G.R. No. 105992 February 1, 1995
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. ROLANDO CABRERA, ROLAND SUNGKIP and ALANDINO CAPARENO, accused. ROLANDO CABRERA, accused-appellant.

FACTS

Accused-appellant Rolando Cabrera, together with Roland Sungkip and Alandino Capareno, was charged with Robbery with Double Homicide for the killing of spouses Wilfredo Chua Lim and Libby Teng de Lim on August 27, 1989, in Kalookan City. The prosecution’s main witness, Glerissa Piamonte, a 15-year-old babysitter employed by the victims, testified that at around 2:15 a.m., the three accused, who were also helpers in the household, knocked on the bedroom door. When she opened it, she saw Sungkip and Capareno armed with steel bars. Appellant Cabrera grabbed her, threatened to kill her if she shouted, and forcibly dragged her out of the room, causing her to lose consciousness. When she recovered, she heard thuds from inside the room. She hid in a comfort room and later found her employers dead, with the steel bars left near the door and two plastic bags of money missing. The accused fled. Appellant claimed he was forced at knifepoint by his co-accused to flee with them to Fairview, Quezon City, and later to Masbate, and that he did not report the incident due to fear. The trial court convicted appellant based on circumstantial evidence, finding him guilty not of robbery with double homicide but of double homicide, and sentenced him to reclusion perpetua.

ISSUE

Whether the trial court correctly convicted accused-appellant Rolando Cabrera of double homicide based on circumstantial evidence and a finding of conspiracy.

RULING

Yes, the conviction is affirmed but with modification of the penalty. The Supreme Court held that the circumstantial evidence was sufficient to establish appellant’s guilt beyond reasonable doubt. The chain of circumstances—appellant’s presence with his armed co-accused at the crime scene, his act of threatening and dragging the witness, the coordinated entry into the victims’ room, the simultaneous flight and hiding for three months, and his incredible defense of being forced—proved conspiracy. Conspiracy need not be proved by direct evidence and can be inferred from the accused’s conduct before, during, and after the crime. The court found the testimony of witness Glerissa credible and accorded respect to the trial court’s findings. However, the penalty was modified: for each crime of homicide, the proper penalty is an indeterminate sentence of ten (10) years, four (4) months, and twenty (20) days of prision mayor maximum as minimum, to seventeen (17) years, two (2) months, and ten (10) days of reclusion temporal medium as maximum. The award of indemnity and damages was affirmed.