Drugs case vs 2 ex-Starstruck contestants junked

The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Wednesday junked an illegal drugs case against two former contestants of GMA Network's reality show Starstruck. In a 16-page resolution, the DOJ said it did not find probable cause to charge Vivo Ouano, 21, and Jericho Rizalado, 22, with violation of Section 15 of Republic Act 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. The resolution was signed by Assistant Prosecutor Juan Pedro Navera and approved by Prosecutor General Claro Arellano. Ouano and Rizalado appeared in the third season of Starstruck.

Apart from Ouano and Rizalado, their companions Jojo Pangilinan, 22, and Joshua Cue, 21, were ordered dropped from the charge sheet. Of the five individuals originally slapped with charges by the police, only Charles Joseph Lacson, 25, was ordered charged for violation of RA 9165. Lacson allegedly peddled illegal drugs including Phentermine and Diazepam. The five were arrested last month by the police's Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task FOrce (AIDSOTF) in Town and Country Subdivision in Antipolo City. - Mark D. Merueñas/KBK, GMA News