Michelle Dee and Rhian Ramos' lawyer explains why driver's claims vs her clients are 'physically impossible'
Michelle Dee and Rhian Ramos’ legal counsel said the assault claims of the latter's driver against them are "physically impossible."
Atty. Maggie Abraham-Garduque made the statement in a video shared on Fast Talk with Boy Abunda on Thursday, Jan. 29.
“Physically impossible and also incredible kasi based on the allegation of the driver, nangyari daw ‘yung alleged mauling and illegal detention from Jan. 17 to 19. So ‘yun ‘yung mga period na sinabi niya," the lawyer said. "However, records would show na si Michelle Dee was in Iloilo noong buong araw ng Jan. 17, and she was able to go back to Manila only on Jan. 18."
Abraham-Garduque added that they have all the documents and materials to back their claim, including Dee's plane tickets and posts proving she was out of town at the time.
She also pointed out that the driver's medical examination results do not align with his testimony.
“There was no sign of any injury na nakita sa medical doon sa inquest. Otherwise, dapat nalagay na 'yun or na-alleged doon sa inquest investigation. Isa pa doon is, para sa amin, ‘yung allegations niya doon sa nangyaring mauling—hindi siya nagma-match doon sa mga injury na pinakita niya sa interview,” she said.
“Ang allegation niya doon sa interview niya was sinuntok siya, sinipa, sinampal sa mukha, tapos sinipa at sinuntok, binugbog siya sa katawan. Tapos there was the one incident na tinusok siya ni Michelle ng kuko nito sa mata. Pero nung pinakita niya sa media kahapon, ‘yung mga alleged injury niya, napakalinis ng katawan niya. Tapos wala rin siyang injury sa mata. So kumbaga ‘yung mga affected area supposedly based on his allegations ay malinis," she added.
The lawyer also stressed that her clients didn't intend to detain the driver illegally, noting that the latter was brought to the police station for proper investigation.
“Para sa amin, there was no illegal detention... If there was an intent to detain, dapat hindi siya dinala sa police station for proper investigation ng authorities,” she said.
Ramos' driver filed a complaint against her as well as Dee, Samantha Panlilio, and others, accusing them of serious illegal detention and torture. He claimed he was detained for three days in a condo unit due to his purported possession of sensitive photographs. After the alleged assault, he said he jumped from the window, which was 39 floors high. However, he said that Ramos' two bodyguards caught him and brought him back to the unit.
The group then escorted him into police custody, where the complainants filed a formal charge of qualified theft through the Makati Office of the Prosecutor.
The driver was detained but was released on Jan. 22 after the prosecutor's office dismissed the complaint.
Dee and Ramos, through Abraham-Garduque, denied the assault claims against them on Jan. 28. Panlilio has yet to publicly comment on the matter as of this writing.
