GR 126119; (October, 2003) (Digest)
G.R. No. 126119; October 15, 2003
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, appellee, vs. PO3 GILDO B. PELOPERO, PO3 ERWIN L. FERNANDEZ, and MAMERTO L. PELOPERO, appellants.
FACTS
Appellants, two police officers and a barangay captain, were charged with Kidnapping with Murder for the death of Nilo Fajardo on June 1, 1992. The prosecution’s case rested primarily on the testimonies of two eyewitnesses, German Lorca, Jr. and Crispin Liza, who were admitted into the Witness Protection Program. They testified that they saw appellant PO3 Gildo Pelopero strike a bound and bloodied victim with a piece of wood in front of appellant PO3 Erwin Fernandez. Appellant Mamerto Pelopero, seated in a patrol jeep, instructed them to hasten the act. The witnesses, under threat from the armed appellants, were then compelled to help carry the victim’s body to a well, where they dropped it in and covered the site. The skeletal remains were exhumed in 1994.
The appellants denied the accusations, presenting alibis and claiming the witnesses were coerced by investigators. The trial court convicted the three appellants of Murder, acquitting two other police officers due to reasonable doubt. The court found the qualifying circumstance of treachery present, as the attack was sudden and rendered the victim, who was tied up, defenseless.
ISSUE
Whether the guilt of appellants for the crime of Murder was proven beyond reasonable doubt.
RULING
Yes, the Supreme Court affirmed the conviction but modified the penalty and damages. The Court found the testimonies of the eyewitnesses credible and consistent. Their initial delay in reporting the crime, out of fear of the accused who were police officers, was satisfactorily explained and does not impair their credibility. The witnesses’ positive identification of the appellants and their detailed account of the events prevailed over the appellants’ weak defenses of denial and alibi.
The Court upheld the finding of treachery. The victim was already restrained and helpless when he was fatally struck, ensuring the execution of the crime without risk to the assailants. However, the Supreme Court modified the penalty. Applying the Indeterminate Sentence Law, and considering that the crime was committed before the effectivity of Republic Act No. 7659, the proper penalty is an indeterminate sentence ranging from twelve years of prision mayor as minimum to twenty years of reclusion temporal as maximum. The award of civil indemnity was sustained at ₱50,000, with additional awards of ₱25,000 as temperate damages and ₱25,000 as exemplary damages.