MANILA - Lorayne Pardo, the widow of actor Richard Gutierrez's assistant, has filed a petition before the Department of Justice (DOJ) asking the agency to handle a homicide case she filed against the actor.

Mrs. Pardo had filed a charge of reckless imprudence resulting in homicide against Gutierrez, before the Office of the Provincial Prosecutor in Imus, Cavite last July.

She is seeking vindication for the death of her husband, Nomar Pardo, who was killed in a car accident last May 22.

Gutierrez was driving along Silang, Cavite along with Pardo and a bodyguardm when his car careened off the road and crashed into a pole. The accident happened 3 months ago.

Pardo was later found dead by policemen. His body was thrown a few feet away from the vehicle, reportedly due to the force of impact.

In a prior statement, Gutierrez called Mrs. Pardo's move an "unfair act." The actor stressed that he was not negligent and that the Silang incident purely happened by accident. He said it could have happened to anyone, and cited 6 reported vehicular accidents that happened in the same area.

"What happened in the morning of May 22 was an accident, one which took my friend's life and where I also could have died,” Gutierrez said in a statement aired on ABS-CBN's gossip show "The Buzz."
 
The actor also said that he had publicly declared his intention to help Pardo's children by funding their education - an offer allegedly rejected by Pardo's widow. "I cared for a friend that I had lost and I knew that this was what my friend would have wanted," he said.

Gutierrez maintained his innocence and said that he and his family "will not be pressured or coerced" by Pardo's case. "We will trust that the justice system will vindicate me in the end,” he said. 

Gutierrez will reportedly present evidence that will support his claims "at the proper time."