GR 97437 39; (February, 1993) (Digest)
G.R. Nos. 97437-39 February 5, 1993
People of the Philippines, plaintiff-appellee, vs. Josue Molas, accused-appellant.
FACTS
Accused-appellant Josue Molas was charged with three counts of murder for the deaths of Dulcesima Resonable, Abelardo Resonable (an 8-year-old boy), and Soledad Resonable on the evening of February 2, 1983, in Sitio Inas, Dobdob, Valencia, Negros Oriental. Molas and Dulcesima were sweethearts engaged to be married. Upon returning home that evening, Bernardo Resonable found his son Abelardo wounded at the doorway. Abelardo identified Molas as the assailant who also stabbed Dulcesima and Soledad. Bernardo found Dulcesima dead in a dried carabao mud pool and Soledad dead near the house. Abelardo died the next day. At dawn on February 3, 1983, Molas surrendered to the Pamplona police with blood-stained clothes and the murder weapon, a hunting knife. On March 10, 1983, he gave a sworn confession before a judge, with the assistance of counsel, detailing how he stabbed Soledad after she attacked Dulcesima, then stabbed Abelardo when the boy boxed him, and finally stabbed Dulcesima after she challenged him. During trial, Molas recanted, claiming he found the victims already dead and was chased by unidentified persons, but his testimony was riddled with inconsistencies. The trial court convicted him of three counts of murder.
ISSUE
Whether the trial court erred in convicting accused-appellant Josue Molas of three counts of murder based on the evidence presented.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s judgment. The conviction was supported by Molas’s extrajudicial confession, given voluntarily with counsel present and translated into Cebuano, and corroborated by other evidence. This included his surrender with the murder weapon and blood-stained clothing, Abelardo’s dying declaration identifying Molas, and testimonies of policemen to whom he admitted guilt. The Court found the qualifying circumstance of abuse of superior strength present, as Molas, armed and stronger, attacked the unarmed victims—a woman and a child. Treachery was not appreciated. The penalty of reclusion perpetua for each murder was affirmed, with the civil indemnity increased to P50,000 for each case.