G.R. No. 100699 July 5, 1996
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. EDGAR GUTIERREZ y CORTEZ, accused-appellant.

FACTS

The accused, Edgar Gutierrez, was charged with arson under Presidential Decree No. 1613 for allegedly setting fire to the house of Josefa Arroyo in Kalookan City on December 14, 1989. The prosecution presented eyewitness Felipe Enriquez, a barangay tanod, who testified that he saw appellant, carrying a bag that appeared to contain gasoline, throw it at the house of Mario Alano (the occupant and brother of the owner) and then ignite it. Mario Alano himself testified that he heard appellant’s voice threatening to blow up the house before hearing an impact and seeing his wall catch fire. The police responded to the scene, and appellant was pointed out as the perpetrator.
The defense interposed alibi, presenting Democrito Real who claimed appellant spent the night at his residence due to injuries from an earlier altercation. Appellant himself denied the accusation, claiming he was framed by Mario Alano. The Regional Trial Court convicted appellant of arson and sentenced him to reclusion perpetua, ordering him to pay P500.00 in actual damages.

ISSUE

The core issue is whether the prosecution proved the corpus delicti of arson and the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt.

RULING

The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction but modified the penalty and deleted the award of damages. The Court held that the corpus delicti in arson—the fact that a crime was committed—is established by proof of the occurrence of fire and its intentional causation. The credible and consistent testimonies of prosecution witnesses Enriquez and Alano sufficiently proved these elements. Enriquez’s eyewitness account detailed appellant’s act of throwing an incendiary bag and lighting it, which was corroborated by Alano who heard the threat and the impact. The defense of alibi was weak and could not prevail over this positive identification.
However, the Court found the trial court erred in imposing reclusion perpetua. The information alleged damage worth only P500.00 to a wooden wall, and the burnt house was made of light materials. Under P.D. 1613, the applicable provision was Article 329(2) of the Revised Penal Code, as the damage was minimal and the structure was not inhabited at the time. The crime was thus simple arson, not destructive arson under P.D. 1744. With no aggravating or mitigating circumstances, the penalty is prision mayor in its medium period. Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, the Court modified the sentence to an indeterminate penalty of 2 years, 4 months, and 1 day of prision correccional as minimum, to 8 years and 1 day of prision mayor as maximum. The award of P500.00 was deleted as the testimony on the repair cost was hearsay.