DOJ: Deniece Cornejo, Cedric Lee must show up for probe Friday

A Department of Justice (DOJ) panel rejected on Thursday Deniece Cornejo’s bid to reset Friday’s conduct of the preliminary investigation into the complaint filed by comedian Vhong Navarro against her and seven others.

Prosecutor General Claro Arellano said that Cornejo had asked for a postponement because the hearing of the temporary protection order she was seeking against Navarro from a Taguig City regional trial court would also be held Friday.

Arellano explained, however, that the DOJ panel which was tasked to look into both parties’ allegations against each other did not grant Cornejo’s request because the proceeding had been set before the court hearing in Taguig.

Cornejo filed a petition for a temporary protection order against Navarro after she accused the comedian-TV host of raping her in her Taguig City condominium on Jan. 22.  Navarro, who was mauled by businessman Cedric Lee and several other men after he was allegedly caught in the act of forcing himself on the model, sued Cornejo, Lee and six others for extortion, claiming that the whole thing was a setup.

Set to appear in Friday’s hearing are Cornejo, Lee and his sister Bernice who is also one of the accused.

The panel earlier excused Navarro from attending today’s hearing after he went to the DOJ last week to sign and subscribe to his affidavits against Cornejo, et al. He was also given a copy of her rape complaint against him.