Senate detains Jojo Nones for contempt over charity donation dispute

On Monday, the Senate ordered Jojo Nones, an independent contractor at GMA Network, to be detained for contempt after he denied offering a financial donation to Sandro Muhlach's charity of choice and continuously lied during the hearing.

Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada cited Nones for contempt during a hearing where Muhlach and his lawyer appeared virtually while Nones and Richard Cruz attended in person, with Estrada repeatedly asking Nones to reveal the truth but receiving denials.

Sen. Robin Padilla, head of the Senate committee on public information and mass media, approved the motion for contempt against Nones after Annette Gozon-Valdes signed an affidavit confirming that Nones offered money to Niño Muhlach's chosen charity.

During the hearing, Sandro Muhlach attended online as his counsel sought executive session, while singer Gerald Santos revealed he was raped by a GMA Network musical director when he was 15 years old.

The Senate will only release Nones from custody once he speaks the truth about the allegations and Singer Gerald Santos learned that rape has a 20-year prescriptive period, potentially allowing him to file a complaint over a decade later.