Archie Alemania’s appeal has been denied by a Bacoor court, which affirmed his conviction for acts of lasciviousness involving actress Rita Daniela.
According to a report by GMA News Online, Rita’s camp provided a copy of the latest court decision.
Dated August 3, 2026, and signed by Presiding Judge Persephone Meir B. Belena, the decision of the Bacoor Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 116 in Cavite upheld the October 2025 ruling of the Bacoor Municipal Trial Court in Cities (MTCC) Branch 2, finding him guilty beyond reasonable doubt of acts of lasciviousness.
It was back in October 2024 when Rita filed a complaint over an alleged incident in a Thanksgiving party that happened in September 2024, in Bacoor City. In the complaint, Archie allegedly forcibly kissed and touched Rita against her will and without consent.
By October 2025, Archie was found guilty of committing acts of lasciviousness, with the Bacoor MTCC Branch 2 sentencing him to up to one year of jail time and fees of ₱20,000 in civil indemnity and ₱20,000 in moral damages.
Archie pleaded not guilty when he was arraigned in April 2025.
In his appeal, Archie challenged the circumstances surrounding the alleged incident, particularly the configuration of the vehicle where it reportedly happened. He argued that the acts described by Rita were improbable given the space inside the vehicle.
The court did not agree with his argument, saying: "The acts described, restraining, kissing, and groping inside a vehicle are not inherently impossible. They may be uncomfortable or difficult, but not contrary to human experience."
"[T]his court is convinced and satisfied that the evidence tendered by the prosecution for the purpose of establishing the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt warrants the conviction of the accused," the decision said.
The RTC consequently denied Archie’s appeal and affirmed the MTCC Branch 2 ruling in its entirety.
“Wherefore, the appeal is denied. Accordingly, the decision of Municipal Trial Court in Cities of Bacoor City, Branch 2, in Criminal Case No. BCCR-25-0221 finding accused-appellant guilty beyond reasonable doubt for the commission of the crime of acts of lasciviousness under Article 336 of the Revised Penal Code is hereby affirmed in toto."
Following this, Rita’s legal counsel, Atty. Maggie Abraham-Garduque, said that the actress was “very happy” with the decision.
“Rita is very happy about it. This shows that the decision of the MTC convicting Archie for acts of lasciviousness is correct,” Atty. Maggie said in a message to GMA News Online.
“Since Archie did not avail of probation but instead opted to appeal the decision of MTC convicting him for the offense of acts of lasciviousness, upon finality of the decision he should serve his sentence of imprisonment,” she added.
Archie has yet to respond to the latest decision as of this writing.
In an interview with Ogie Diaz in August, Archie broke his silence on the issue and said that he never touched Rita and would never touch anyone without consent.
“Hindi ko kayang gawin yun. Sa tinagal tagal ko sa showbiz, sa dinami-dami ng naging chicks ko, sa dinami-daming babae ko, never ako nang manyak. Never ako nanghipo ng walang consent–– never ko gagawin yun,” he said.
Archie maintained that he is also a "gentleman," a trait that his previous partners allegedly liked about him.
“Never ko ginawa kahit kanino yun. Kahit nung nambababae ako, never. Napaka-gentleman ko. Kaya nga ako nagugustuhan, never ako nangmamanyak. Lumubog man ako sa kinauupuan ko, mamatay man lahat ng anak ko, mamatay man nanay ko, Father God, ilubog mo na kami lahat kung hinawakan ko siya sa mga maseselang parte ng katawan niya."
“[I] swear to God, mamatay man buong pamilya ko at mga anak ko, sana kaya mo sabihin yan. Sabihin mo nga? Ako, I can say that. Hindi ko kaya manghipo. I can’t do that–– hindi ako ganun,” he maintained.