Former SunStar Cebu and SunStar Bacolod editor-in-chief Marchel Espina (right) listens as police officers read her Miranda rights at the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG)-Negros Island Region headquarters in Bacolod City on Friday, July 17, 2026. Espina voluntarily surrendered and posted bail after a Batangas court issued a warrant for her arrest in connection with an unjust vexation case stemming from an opinion piece published in SunStar Cebu in December 2024. She was accompanied by her lawyer, Abegail Bayona (center). (Contributed photo)
BACOLOD CITY — Marchel Espina, the former editor-in-chief of SunStar Cebu and SunStar Bacolod, surrendered to authorities and posted bail on Friday. This followed an arrest warrant issued by a Batangas court over an unjust vexation case filed by a local religious leader.
The legal complaint is rooted in an opinion article written by a contributor and published in SunStar Cebu under Espina’s leadership in December 2024.
Espina surrendered to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG)–Negros Island Region in Bacolod City and posted bail of P6,000.
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