GR 115988; (March, 1996) (Digest)
G.R. No. 115988 March 29, 1996
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. LEO LIAN y VERANO, accused-appellant.
FACTS
On June 27, 1990, appellant Leo Lian was apprehended by police at the public market of Pugo, La Union. A barangay tanod had reported seeing Lian with a handgun tucked in his waist. Upon locating Lian, the apprehending officer, Sgt. Orlandino Lales, noticed a bulge at Lian’s waistline. When questioned, Lian reacted angrily and reached for his waist, revealing a .45 caliber pistol. The firearm, with a live round in its chamber, was confiscated. Lian could not present any license or permit to possess the firearm, leading to his arrest and subsequent charge for illegal possession under Presidential Decree No. 1866.
At trial, Lian admitted physical possession of the gun and bullet but denied criminal intent. He claimed he found the firearm in a bag on a bus earlier that day and intended to surrender it. He testified that he tucked it in his waist and proceeded to the market, where he met friends for a drinking session and forgot about the gun before being accosted. The Regional Trial Court convicted him, sentencing him to reclusion temporal maximum to reclusion perpetua.
ISSUE
Whether the prosecution proved beyond reasonable doubt the element of animus possidendi (intent to possess) required for a conviction under P.D. No. 1866 for illegal possession of firearm.
RULING
Yes. The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction but modified the penalty. The Court held that illegal possession under P.D. No. 1866 punishes possession without license, whether actual or constructive, provided there is animus possidendi. This intent is a state of mind determined from the accused’s prior and contemporaneous acts and surrounding circumstances. Here, Lian’s claim of incidental possession and intent to surrender was unsubstantiated and belied by his conduct. He voluntarily took the gun, concealed it on his person, and carried it in a public place while socializing. His angry reaction and reach for the weapon when confronted further demonstrated conscious possession and control. His inability to present a license completed the elements of the offense. The penalty was rectified to an indeterminate sentence of ten years and one day of prision mayor as minimum to eighteen years, eight months and one day of reclusion temporal as maximum, as the offense was committed without any aggravating circumstances.