Nearly eight years after Gretchen Fullido brought her sexual harassment complaint to court, a Quezon City judge has acquitted former ABS-CBN News supervising producer Cheryl Favila and segment producer Maricar Asprec.
In a 91-page decision promulgated on August 28, 2026, Quezon City Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 32 Judge Angeli Albana-Garrido found that the prosecution failed to establish that the accused is guilty of violation of Republic Act No. 7877, or the Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995.
The court stressed that doubts in criminal cases must be "resolved in favor of the accused."
The decision read in part: "It is well-established in jurisprudence that in criminal law, all doubts should be resolved in favor of the accused.
"It is the prosecution's duty to prove beyond reasonable doubt each and every element of the crime charged, otherwise, the accused should be acquitted.
"This is in consonance with the presumption of innocence enshrined in no less than the Constitution."
The ruling further stated: "Wherefore, premises considered, accused Cheryl C. Favila and Maricar P. Asprec are hereby acquitted for the crime of Sexual Harassment in the Workplace under R.A. No. 7877 for Criminal Case No. 19-05659-CR based on reasonable doubt."
GRETCHEN FULLIDO VS FAVILA, ASPREC: TIMELINE OF EVENTS
The case traces its roots to November 2017, when Fullido filed an administrative complaint before ABS-CBN against Favila, then a news executive and supervising producer, and Asprec, a segment producer.
Fullido alleged that the two had sent her text messages containing sexual innuendos over a span of about three years. She claimed the messages amounted to requests for sexual favors and that her work as a TV Patrol reporter and anchor became more difficult after she rejected the alleged advances.
In July 2018, ABS-CBN's investigating committee dismissed the sexual harassment allegations, saying there was insufficient evidence to support the claims. Reports at the time noted that Fullido acknowledged there had been no explicit demand for sexual favors.
However, the network found Favila liable for gross misconduct and unprofessional conduct for using sexually oriented language within a superior-subordinate relationship. Favila subsequently left the company. The complaint against Asprec was dismissed for lack of evidence.
ABS-CBN reiterated then that it took the complaint seriously, acted based on the evidence presented, and does not tolerate workplace sexual harassment.
On October 5, 2018, Fullido filed criminal complaints for sexual harassment against Favila and Asprec before the Quezon City Prosecutor's Office.
She also filed libel complaints against several ABS-CBN executives and colleagues, including Ces Drilon and Marie Lozano.
Fullido alleged that statements made during the controversy damaged her reputation, including claims that she filed the administrative complaint to safeguard her employment status amid speculation surrounding her position in Star Patrol. She also accused Drilon of victim-shaming.
ABS-CBN, for its part, said it respected Fullido's decision to seek legal remedies and would allow the judicial process to run its course.
Favila and Asprec, meanwhile, denied the allegations. Their lawyers maintained that the complaint had no basis, arguing that the text messages cited by Fullido were taken out of context.
In March 2019, the Quezon City Prosecutor's Office junked Gretchen Fullido's libel complaint against Ces Drilon, which stemmed from Drilon's testimony in Fullido's sexual harassment complaint against Cheryl Favila and Maricar Asprec.
In December 2025, the Quezon City Regional Trial Court also acquitted former ABS-CBN reporter Marie Lozano of libel, finding that guilt was not proven beyond reasonable doubt and that her statements were not defamatory.
The fiscal explained that the statements that Drilon and Lozano made in their affidavits were considered "privileged communication" because they did it out of "moral duty" during the course of ABS-CBN's internal investigation.
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