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Fullido harassment claim ‘fabricated,’ ‘homophobic’, says ex news producer’s camp

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<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2018/tvpatrol/10/05/20181006-gretchen_1.jpg"/><figcaption>ABS-CBN News anchor Gretchen Fullido&#x27;s (left) sexual harassment case against a former news executive and a segment producer is &quot;fabricated&quot; and an &quot;example of discrimination&quot; against the gay community, the respondents&#x27; legal counsel, Evalyn Ursua (right), said Saturday.</figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA—ABS-CBN News anchor Gretchen Fullido&#x27;s sexual harassment case against a former news executive and a segment producer is &quot;fabricated&quot; and an &quot;example of discrimination&quot; against the gay community, the respondents&#x27; legal counsel said Saturday.</p><p>Evalyn Ursua, counsel for former TV Patrol supervising producer Cheryl Favila and segment producer Maricar Asprec, called Fullido&#x27;s allegations &quot;baseless&quot; and vowed to defend her clients against what she branded as an &quot;abuse of the right to file a sexual harassment complaint.&quot;</p><p>&quot;Her baseless complaint is also a classic example of discrimination against LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual and queer) individuals and gender stereotyping against them in matters of sexuality,&quot; Ursua, <a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/nation/04/23/09/update-ca-acquits-smith-nicole-rape">known for prosecuting</a> US Marines whom a Filipino woman charged with rape in 2005, said in a statement.</p><div><a class="embedly-card" data-card-controls="0" href="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2018/tvpatrol/10/05/statement-of-atty-ursua.pdf">Card</a> <script async="" src="//cdn.embedly.com/widgets/platform.js" charSet="UTF-8" type="text/javascript"></script></div><p>Fullido on Friday filed criminal charges against Favila and Asprec, alleging they &quot;sent her text messages that were loaded with sexual innuendos, which amounted to requests for sexual favors.&quot;</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/05/18/abs-cbn-anchor-sues-colleagues-for-sexual-harassment-libel">READ: ABS-CBN anchor sues colleagues for sexual harassment, libel</a></li></ul><p>The anchor&#x27;s camp had said the ABS-CBN management found Favila liable for gross misconduct while dismissing the sexual harassment case against her, leading to her dismissal from the company.</p><p>Ursua, meanwhile, said ABS-CBN dismissed the sexual harassment charge &quot;after Favila and Asprec proved that the text messages that Fullido used as evidence were distorted and maliciously taken out of their conversation threads.&quot;</p><p>&quot;While it pains me to go against another woman in a sexual harassment case, I welcome the opportunity to rise to the defense of two women who are wrongly accused,&quot; she said.</p><p>Fullido also filed libel charges against ABS-CBN journalist Ces Drilon, news executive Venancio Borromeo, and news reporter Marie Lozano.</p><p>Drilon on Saturday issued a statement denying Fullido&#x27;s claim that she &quot;victim-shamed&quot; the entertainment reporter.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/06/18/ces-drilon-belies-victim-shaming-claims-mulls-legal-action-vs-gretchen-fullido">Ces Drilon belies &#x27;victim-shaming&#x27; claims, mulls legal action vs Gretchen Fullido</a></li></ul><p>ABS-CBN, in a statement, said it respects Fullido’s right to pursue criminal complaints against former and current co-workers. </p><p>&quot;ABS-CBN takes sexual harassment allegations seriously and does not condone such acts in the workplace or by its employees,&quot; the network said.</p><p>It said &quot;the company took prompt action on the administrative complaint&quot; Fullido filed against Favila and Asprec and &quot;decided based on the evidence presented,&quot; the statement read.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/10/05/18/abs-cbn-statement-on-gretchen-fullidos-case-vs-abs-cbn-news-executives">ABS-CBN Statement on Gretchen Fullido’s case vs coworkers</a></li></ul>

<p>ABS-CBN anchor Gretchen Fullido's sexual harassment case against a former news executive and a segment producer was "fabricated" and an "example of discrimination" against the gay community, the accused's legal counsel said Saturday.</p>

ABS-CBN anchor Gretchen Fullido's sexual harassment case against a former news executive and a segment producer was "fabricated" and an "example of discrimination" against the gay community, the accused's legal counsel said Saturday.