Bishop still in RP?

He’s not hiding in America. He’s hiding in the Philippines.

This was what a sister of the woman accusing resigned Antipolo Bishop Crisostomo Yalung of sexual misconduct said of the prelate.

Yalung’s accuser, identified by a reliable source as Kristine, earlier said she and Yalung had a love affair that has resulted in the bishop’s fathering her second child.

"He’s not in the States. He’s here in the country. He’s in hiding," said a woman who identified herself as Kristine’s sister, Badet, when The STAR paid a visit to Kristine’s apartment along Marcos Highway in Antipolo City.

The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) earlier issued a statement that Yalung left for the US in mid-November last year due to "pressures" at work and "for personal reasons."

When pressed for the reason why she said Yalung has not left the country, Badet said it is not the proper time for this reporter to talk to Kristine.

Badet was carrying a baby as she spoke to The STAR, supposedly her sister’s child whom Yalung had fathered.

"This is not a good time to talk to (Kristine)," Badet said. "We’ll just call you." She got this reporter’s telephone number as The STAR’s visit to Kristine’s apartment concluded.

Earlier, a source who spoke on condition of anonymity called up this reporter and identified the woman accusing Yalung of fathering her second child as a certain Kristine and gave The STAR her home address.

Upon this reporter’s visit to Kristine’s home, it was found that Kristine did, indeed, live at the address given by the source and that Kristine has two children, a four-year-old son and a baby, as well as a young, female household helper.

The source had called The Star to take up the cudgels for Yalung and said Kristine’s accusations against Yalung are not true.

The source, speaking on condition of anonymity, claimed to be a very close friend of Kristine’s.

The source also said Kristine herself called up various newspapers and identified herself as Annie Torres, supposedly Kristine’s best friend.

"She has no best friend named Annie Torres because we belong to the same group of friends," the source said. "We have no friend named Annie Torres."

"I can no longer stomach what she’s been saying," the source said over the telephone. "That’s a total lie. How can (Kristine) become pregnant by Bishop Yalung when they never had any romantic relationship at all?"

The source supported Kristine’s statement that she gave birth in June, 2002, but added the child could never have been fathered by Yalung.

"Her claims that Bishop Yalung fathered the child is a mere figment of her imagination," the source said. "She’s good at making up stories just to extort money. She’s a hooker who goes out with several men."

"If that child is really Bishop Yalung’s, I’d know, because she enjoys boasting about the men she has had sexual relations with. (Kristine) has had relations with two priests, but she never had that kind of relationship with Bishop Yalung."

The source admitted Kristine was once very close to Yalung, mainly because the bishop gave her financial assistance for her medical treatment after the woman gypped Yalung into believing she was undergoing chemotherapy for cancer.

"Bishop Yalung has been giving financial help for her chemotherapy," the source told The STAR.