Pasay court junks acts of lasciviousness raps vs. contractors in Sandro Muhlach case

The Pasay Metropolitan Trial Court dismissed one of the charges filed against independent contractors Jojo Nones and Richard Cruz concerning actor Sandro Muhlach's alleged sexual assault.

In a State of the Nation report on Wednesday, the Pasay court Branch 46 granted Nones and Cruz’s motion to quash the two counts of acts of lasciviousness against them.

According to the Pasay Court, the filing of acts of lasciviousness case is an “overkill” because it can be considered an element of rape through sexual assault, which the Department of Justice filed in the Pasay Regional Court.  

“Indeed, the acts of lasciviousness being complained of before this court are necessarily included in the charge of rape before the RTC,” the Pasay court said.

“Again, the prosecution resorted to an overkill by filing the instant Information for Acts of Lasciviousness when clearly the acts are constitutive and/or simultaneous and are deemed absorbed in the rape case with the alleged sole intent and purpose of arousing and ultimately gratifying the accused’ own sexual desires,” it added.

GMA Integrated News has reached out to Muhlach’s camp for comments. —Mariel Celine Serquiña/LDF, GMA Integrated News