Batangas 1st District Rep. Leandro Leviste invoked his right to remain silent in connection with the National Bureau of Investigation’s probe into an alleged plot to create a sex scandal targeting Executive Secretary Ralph Recto.

Leviste’s lawyer, Atty. Gabrielle Rondain-Kapunan, appeared before the NBI-National Capital Region on Tuesday and submitted an affidavit on the lawmaker’s behalf.

Kapunan said Leviste invoked his right to remain silent and strongly denied any involvement in the alleged attempt to set up Recto.

“We were allowed to peruse some affidavits,” Kapunan said, declining to discuss their contents.

Asked whether Leviste had returned to the Philippines, Kapunan said she did not know his current whereabouts.

An arrested talent manager previously alleged that Leviste financed a planned “honeytrap” operation against Recto. The allegation has not been independently established, and Leviste has denied involvement through his counsel.

NBI Director Melvin Matibag earlier confirmed that Leviste and his mother, Sen. Loren Legarda, had left the country on separate flights to Hong Kong, with France as their final destination.

The NBI is investigating allegations that an individual was to be lured into a compromising situation to manufacture a sex scandal against Recto.