Actress Claudine Barretto has appealed to the public not to rush to judgment against her sister Gretchen Barretto, who has been linked to the controversial missing sabungeros case.
In a recent interview on the vlog of Ogie Diaz and Ate Dick, Claudine was asked about her current relationship with her older sister.
“Ang ate ko, she’s very strong,” Claudine said, before addressing the allegations against Gretchen.
“Ako, makikiusap na po ako. Hangga’t hindi kayo hinahatulan na guilty, until proven guilty, inosente pa po ang tao,” she stressed.
However, Claudine declined to go into further details, saying she does not have the authority to speak for her sister.
“May usapan kaming magkapatid, we will not talk for the other. May usapan kaming gano’n. Na she never gave me the authority to speak on her behalf,” she explained.
Gretchen’s name surfaced in the case after whistleblower Julie “Dondon” Aguilar Patidongan identified her, along with businessman Atong Ang, as among the supposed masterminds behind the disappearance of cockfighting aficionados.
Her lawyer, however, has denied the claims, clarifying that Gretchen was merely one of 20 investors in the suspended Pitmaster e-sabong operations and had no role in its day-to-day management.
“She did not operate the sabungan, had no participation in e-sabong operations… and was merely an investor in the business,” the camp said in an earlier statement, adding that the accusations were “plain invention.”
The case of the missing sabungeros, which involves at least 34 individuals who vanished between 2021 and 2022, remains one of the most high-profile unresolved controversies in recent years.
