by Pinoy Gonzales /PNS
Houston, Texas — Filipino journalist Alex P. Vidal has filed a damage suit against prominent boxing trainer Freddie Roach. Vidal alleged Roach pushed and threatened to kill Vidal when he wrote a story in July 2008 that "the trainer missed the workout" of a boxing champion in the Wild Card gym in Hollywood, California "because he was sick." Vidal, associate editor of Philippine News Service (PNS) and director of the Press Photographers of the Philippines (PPP) Iloilo Chapter, filed the case before the Superior Court of the State of California County of Los Angeles, Stanley Mosk Courthouse on January 20.
The case stemmed from an incident that allegedly occurred on July 26, 2008 in the morning near the elevators of the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.
‘WHO WROTE THAT STORY?’
Vidal, who writes a boxing story for Philboxing, said he was with Texas-based doctor Allan Recto talking to a female boxer Chika Nakamura and another male trainer when "Freddie Roach approached us and inquired, ‘who wrote that story that I was sick?’" "Dr. Recto then pointed to me," said Vidal. "In a hostile and intimidating manner Fred yelled at me that his mother got worried when she learned he was ‘sick’ and called him up. He stated to me that he was not sick and that he only went to a clinic."
Vidal explained: "I apologized and explained to him that I did not intend to twist anything when I wrote the story, titled "‘Sick’ Roach misses Concepcion’s final workout in Wild Card gym." I told him I merely quoted Aljoe Jaro, manager of boxer Bernabe Concepcion, and that I used a single quotation in the word ‘sick’ to mean that somebody had said it, not the writer who merely quoted Jaro."
Vidal said "Dr. Recto also helped explain to Fred that the article did not mean any harm."Fred ignored Dr. Recto’s statement and turned his attention back to me and started yelling at me. I apologized some more, but Fred suddenly pushed me hard in the left shoulder and hollered, "the next time you write about it I will kill you," the journalist added.
Vidal said the incident had been captured by the hotel surveillance video since it happened inside the hotel, near the elevators.
SHOCKED AND EMBARRASSED
Vidal said: "The incident gave me tremendous fear. I was trembling in fear and was emotionally distressed. I was also shocked and embarrassed. I continued to apologize to Fred."
"Several days prior to the incident, Dr. Recto joked with me that "Fred is looking for you because of what you wrote about him." Dr. Recto was joking when he made that statement and I had no reason to believe that anything I had written about Fred would actually upset him. In fact, in the past I had written several articles praising Fred."
Vidal said when Roach approached him from behind, "I did not expect him to act in such a violent hostile manner towards me."
Because of his "depression" and "fear", Vidal said, "I never went back to Fred’s gym in Hollywood."
"I arrived again in the United States on Nov. 20, 2008 to cover the fight of Manny Pacquiao versus Oscar De La Hoya on December 6, 2008 in Las Vegas. I was supposed to conduct interview with Pacquiao, among other personalities at Fred’s gym as part of my job obligation, but out of my fear and concern for my safety, I opted to stay away," confessed Vidal who made a "declaration" on January 7, 2009 in Los Angeles, California.
GREG ASUNCION
Why he decided to come out in the open and filed a complaint against Roach? "Because when I heard that Freddie Roach also allegedly assaulted one Gregorio ‘Greg’ Asuncion inside the Wild Card gym on Oct. 20, 2008 and that Asuncion filed a complaint against Freddie Roach, I thought I should be brave enough to also seek justice for what happened to me," Vidal explained.
"I am fully aware that when Asuncion sued Freddie Roach, critics ribbed Asuncion; they ridiculed Asuncion, ostracized him and called him names. I believe, no matter what they will say against me, there is surveillance video in the hotel when the incident happened that can back up my claim. Also, in the United States, I learned that the validity for any complaint has a grace period of one year. Most of all, I have faith in the justice system of the United States of America.The truth will come out."
Alex P. Vidal is the Editor-in-Chief of the Iloilo Today and Associate Editor of the Philippine News Service. He is also columnist of the Philippine Asian News Today based in Vancouver, Canada. He writes a column in Madyaas Pen.
He writes as correspondent of the Philippine News Agency and is regular contributor of Philboxing.com and Bandera. A former Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Informer and Sun Star Iloilo, Vidal is also former President of the Iloilo Press Club, the oldest press organization in the Philippines.
Vidal is currently the Philippine Supervisor of the World Boxing Foundation (WBF) based in Sydney, Australia and is licensed professional boxing referee and judge. He is also Director of the Press Photographers of the Philippines (PPP) Iloilo Chapter and Director of the National Union of Journalist of the Philippines (NUJP) Iloilo Chapter. /MP
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