SECOND
DIVISION
|
PEOPLE
OF THE Appellee, - versus - GENEROSO
ROLIDA y Appellant. |
G.R. No. 178322 Present:
QUISUMBING, J., Chairperson, CARPIO
MORALES, CHICO-NAZARIO,* BRION, and PERALTA,**
JJ. Promulgated: March
4, 2009 |
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D E C I S I O N
CARPIO MORALES, J.:
Along with Alex Malabana alias Ka Aldrin, Rodelio Verdagera alias Ka Abel, Nelson Cay alias Ka
Noel, and one Ka Marcel, Generoso
Rolida y Moreno alias Ka David/Ka Raquel
(appellant) was charged before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Gumaca, Quezon
with Murder in an Information reading:
x x x x
That on or about the 27th day of
August, 2001, at Barangay San Isidro Ilaya, Municipality of General Luna,
Province of Quezon, Philippines, and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable
Court, the above-named accused, armed with high powered firearms, M-14 and
M-16, conspiring and confederating together and mutually helping one another,
with intent to kill, with treachery and evident premeditation and taking
advantage of their superior strength, did then and there willfully, unlawfully
and feloniously attack, assault and shoot with said firearms, one Froilan Roman
y de Gala, thereby inflicting upon the latter multiple gunshot wounds on different
parts of his body, which directly caused his death.[1]
x x x x
Only appellant was arraigned, however, as his co-accused
had remained at large and the trial court ordered the case archived as to them.[2] Appellant pleaded not guilty.[3]
Through the combined testimonies of
Marilyn Roman (Marilyn), the widow of Froilan Roman and daughters Pamela Roman
(Pamela) and Maryann Roman (Maryann), the prosecution established the following
version:[4]
At around
While kneeling and with one gun poked
at his neck, the victim, then a member of a Citizens Armed Forces Geographical
Unit (CAFGU) in General Luna, Quezon, begged for his life for the sake of his
family. One of his assailants replied
that the victim had taken one life, hence, he must pay it with his own. The victim’s family thereafter heard
gunshots, and the victim fell on the ground lifeless. The armed men then fired two shots in the
air, exclaiming “Mabuhay! Tagumpay ang
NPA!” (Long live the triumphant NPA!) and hurriedly left.
The victim’s family positively
identified appellant as one of the victim’s assailants. Marilyn recognized appellant as he had no
cover on his face, while Pamela and Maryann remembered him because of the scar
on his face.
Marciano Endiape (Endiape), allegedly
a former member of the New People’s Army (NPA), also testified that the victim
was assassinated for allegedly having guided military operatives in a raid on
an NPA camp, which resulted in the death of two NPA members and the loss of
their firearms.[5] He further stated that the killing of the
victim was planned in a meeting held on
By the account of Dr. Constancia
Mecija, Municipal Health Officer of General Luna, Quezon, her post-mortem
examination of the victim showed that the cause of his death was severe
hemorrhage secondary to multiple gunshot wounds.[8]
Upon the other hand, appellant,
denying any knowledge of the incident, claimed that at about 8:35 p.m. on
August 27, 2001, he was sleeping at his house with his mother in Don Juan
Verceles, San Francisco, Quezon;[9] and that he did not know his co-accused Alex
Malabana and the victim, as well as prosecution witnesses Pamela and Endiape.[10]
Branch 61 of the Gumaca, Quezon RTC crediting
the version of the prosecution, held that the killing was attended by treachery,
conspiracy, and evident premeditation, thus:
x x x x
The fact that high powered guns were used by the accused as testified to by the witness Pamela Roman (April 22, 2004, p. 4), the attack was made in the stillness of the night, the attack was so sudden and unexpected at the time the victim was asleep and what more he was tied with a rope and hit with their long firearm on his chest before he was shot successively which caused his instant death show clearly that treachery attended manifestly the killing in this case.
x x x x
As treachery was conclusively established in this case, abuse of superiority of strength is hereby absorbed.
x x x x
[T]he act of accused showed their unity of purpose, joint design to kill the victim following a consciously adopted plan. Conspiracy having been established the act of one is considered the act of all. [People v. Abendan, 360 SCRA 126 (2001)]
x x x x
Evident premeditation appears to have been thoroughly and sufficiently established in the case at bench as shown from the testimony of Marcelino (sic) Endiape, a former active member of the NPA who formerly belongs to the group SY’P Rivas Buenavista, Quezon headed by Ka Marcel. The court relied heavily on his testimony being in a position to have acquired full knowledge of the same having been with the accused at the time he was an active member of NPA.
x x x x
x x x The NPAs commissioned to
undertake the execution of Froilan Roman, Ka Marcel, Ka Aldrin, Ka David, Ka
Noel, and Ka Abel left Brgy.
The evidence shows that there was
sufficient lapse of time between the determination and the execution to allow
the accused to reflect upon the consequences of their act. In this case, they determined to commit the
crime on
The trial court thus convicted appellant of Murder, by
Judgment of
WHEREFORE AND IN VIEW OF ALL THE
FOREGOING, the court finds accused GENEROSO ROLIDA alias Ka David and alias Ka
Raquel guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of MURDER defined and
penalized under Article 248 of the Revised Penal Code as amended by Republic
Act No. 7659 and hereby sentencing (sic)
him to suffer the penalty of DEATH. Accused
is ordered to pay the heirs of Froilan Roman the amount of P50,000.00 as
civil indemnity; P50,000.00 as moral damages, exemplary damages in the
amount of P30,000.00. Accused is
further ordered to pay the amount of P18,320.00 as actual damages.
In so far as ALEX MALABANA alias Ka Aldrin, Rodelio Verdagera alias Ka Abel, Nelson Cay alias Ka Noel, and one alias Ka Manuel (sic) are concerned, who are presently at large, case is hereby ordered ARCHIVED until their arrest. Let an alias warrant of arrest be issued for their apprehension.[12]
In his brief filed with the Court of
Appeals to which the case was elevated on automatic review,[13] appellant
argued that he was mistakenly identified by the victim’s family which did not
have ample opportunity to observe the faces of the malefactors in view of the
rapid turn of events, as well as the shock and panic that had overcome them;[14] and that his alibi was not improbable, the
location of his residence being borne out by the records; and that he did not
flee, unlike his co-accused, indicates his innocent conscience.[15]
The Solicitor General countered that
there was no doubt as to the identity of appellant as one of the malefactors
since Pamela and Maryann positively identified him through the scar on his left
cheek;[16] and
that appellant’s alibi cannot prosper considering his failure to prove that it
was physically impossible for him to have been at the scene of the crime at the
time of its commission.[17]
By Decision dated P25,000.00.[19] Thus it disposed:
WHEREFORE, the judgment of the court
a quo finding the accused guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of murder
qualified by treachery and with the aggravating circumstance of evident
premeditation is hereby affirmed with modification in the sense that the
penalty of DEATH is modified to Reclusion Perpetua pursuant to Republic Act
9346 which prohibits the imposition of the death penalty. The award of P30,000.00 as exemplary
damages is likewise modified to P25,000.00. The rest of the awards are affirmed. The alias warrants of arrest for the
apprehension of Alex Malabana alias Ka Aldrin, Rogelio Verdagera alias Ka Abel,
Nelia Cay alias Ka Noel and one alias Ka Marcel stay.
Hence, this appeal.
In separate manifestations, appellant
and the Solicitor General informed that they were no longer filing supplemental
briefs, their respective positions having been adequately discussed in the
Briefs they had filed with the appellate court.[20]
In finding the existence of
conspiracy, the trial and appellate courts found the collective acts of appellant
and his cohorts before, during, and after the shooting of the victim as indicating
the pursuit of a common design to kill, hence, the act of one is the act of
all.
The trial and appellate courts also
found the deliberate employment of high-powered guns and nocturnity to have
obviated any opportunity for the victim to defend himself, hence their appreciation
of the presence of treachery which absorbed the circumstance of abuse of
superior strength.
Relying on the testimony of Endiape,
both courts held that evident premeditation attended the killing, there having
been a sufficient interval for cool thought and reflection between the time
appellant and his group determined to commit the crime on August 24, 2001 when
they left for the victim’s residence, and the time that they actually executed
the planned attack on August 27, 2001.
The trial and appellate courts thus found appellant guilty
beyond reasonable doubt of Murder qualified by treachery and aggravated by
evident premeditation.
This Court
finds no compelling reason to rule otherwise.
Parenthetically, the Court notes that appellant did not even present his
mother to corroborate his claim of alibi.
With
respect to the penalty, the Court finds the appellate court’s imposition of reclusion perpetua to be in accord with
the mandate of R.A. No. 9346.[21] It bears to stress that appellant is not
eligible for parole.[22]
As for
the award of damages, the Court sustains the appellate court’s awards of P50,000 as moral damages and P25,000 as exemplary damages, but
increases its award of civil indemnity from P50,000 to P75,000,
and awards temperate damages of P25,000
in lieu of the actual damages proven in the amount of P18,320.
The award of P50,000 as moral damages is in
order in view of the violent death of the victim and the resultant grief of his
family.[23] The award of exemplary damages of P25,000 is in order too, the crime
having been committed with one or more aggravating circumstances.[24]
In line with prevailing
jurisprudence, civil indemnity ex delicto
is, however, increased to P75,000.[25] And since the actual damages proven during
the trial amount to less than P25,000,
the same having totaled only P18,320, the award of temperate
damages of P25,000 in
lieu thereof is justified.[26]
WHEREFORE, the
March 5, 2007 Decision of the Court of Appeals affirming that of Branch 61 of
the Gumaca, Quezon RTC is MODIFIED in
that the award of civil indemnity is INCREASED
to P75,000; that
temperate damages in the amount of P25,000
are AWARDED in lieu of actual
damages; and that appellant is not eligible for parole. In all other respects, the challenged
Decision is AFFIRMED.
SO
ORDERED.
CONCHITA
CARPIO MORALES
Associate Justice
WE CONCUR:
|
LEONARDO A. QUISUMBING Associate Justice Chairperson |
MINITA V. CHICO-NAZARIO Associate Justice |
|
ARTURO D. BRION Associate Justice |
DIOSDADO M. PERALTA Associate Justice |
ATTESTATION
I attest
that the conclusions in the above Decision had been reached in consultation
before the case was assigned to the writer of the opinion of the Court’s
Division.
LEONARDO
A. QUISUMBING
Associate
Justice
Chairperson
CERTIFICATION
Pursuant to
Section 13, Article VIII of the Constitution, and the Division Chairperson’s
Attestation, I certify that the conclusions in the above decision had been
reached in consultation before the case was assigned to the writer of the
opinion of the Court’s Division.
REYNATO
S. PUNO
Chief Justice
* Additional member per Special Order No.
580 dated
** Additional member per Special Order No. 572
dated
[1] Records, p. 2.
[2]
[3] Ibid.
[4] TSN,
[5] TSN,
[6]
[7] Ibid.
[8] TSN,
[9] TSN,
[10]
[11] Records, pp. 239-246.
[12]
[13]
[14] CA rollo, pp. 69-71.
[15]
[16]
[17]
[18] Penned by Associate Justice Monina Arevalo-Zenarosa, with the concurrence of Justices Marina L. Buzon and Edgardo F. Sundiam; CA rollo, pp. 166-190.
[19] CA rollo, pp. 189-190.
[20] Rollo, pp. 31-35.
[21] Section 2 of R.A. No. 9346 provides:
SEC. 2. In lieu of the death penalty, the following shall be imposed.
(a) the penalty of reclusion perpetua, when the law violated makes use of the nomenclature of the penalties of the Revised Penal Code; or
(b) the penalty of life imprisonment, when the law violated does not
make use of the nomenclature of the penalties of the Revised Penal Code.
[22] Vide Section 3 of R.A. No. 9346:
SEC. 3. Persons convicted of offenses punished with reclusion
perpetua, or whose sentences will be reduced to reclusion perpetua, by reason of this Act, shall not be eligible
for parole under Act No. 4180, otherwise known as the Indeterminate Sentence
Law, as amended.
[23] People
v. Tubongbanua, G.R. No. 171271,
[24] Ibid.
[25] People
v. Tubongbanua, supra at 742; vide
People v. Dela Cruz, G.R. No.171272,
[26] Vide
People v. Villanueva, G.R. No. 139177,
[W]hen actual damages proven by receipts
during the trial amount to less than P25,000,
as in this case, the award of
temperate damages for P25,000
is justified in lieu of actual damages of a lesser amount. Conversely, if the amount of actual damages
proven exceeds P25,000,
then temperate damages may no longer be awarded; actual damages based on the
receipts presented during trial should instead be granted.