G.R. No. 129074 February 28, 2000
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. SALVADOR LOMERIO, defendant-appellant.

FACTS

Accused-appellant Salvador Lomerio was convicted of statutory rape against his ten-year-old niece, Leonila Bunagan. The prosecution’s evidence established that on March 23, 1993, Lomerio was tasked to fetch the victim and her siblings from their Antipolo home. After arriving late at night, he stayed over. While the children slept, Lomerio twice forcibly had sexual intercourse with Leonila, threatening to kill them if she reported the acts. The crime was discovered two days later through neighborhood talk, prompting the victim’s mother to have her medically examined and file a complaint.
The defense presented Lomerio as its sole witness. He denied the rape, claiming he only accidentally touched Leonila’s breast while waking up, which he believed triggered the false accusation. He emphasized the medico-legal finding that the victim was still in a “virgin state” with no signs of genital injury. The trial court rejected his defense, finding the victim’s testimony credible and convicting him of statutory rape under Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, sentencing him to reclusion perpetua.

ISSUE

The core issue is whether the trial court erred in convicting Lomerio of rape despite the medico-legal report indicating the victim’s physical virginity and the alleged inconsistencies in the testimonies of the prosecution witnesses.

RULING

The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction. The legal logic is anchored on the nature of statutory rape and the principles governing credibility of witnesses. In statutory rape, carnal knowledge of a woman under twelve years of age is punishable regardless of her consent or the use of force. The victim’s age, being ten, is the sole constitutive element of the crime. Thus, the medico-legal finding of an intact hymen is inconsequential; full penetration of the vagina is not required to constitute rape, as even the slightest penetration of the labia is sufficient. The Court held that the testimony of a child-victim of tender years is accorded full weight and credibility, as her narration of a harrowing experience is unlikely to be fabricated. The alleged inconsistencies in the testimonies of the victim and her siblings regarding minor details, such as the presence of a weapon, were deemed trivial and did not affect the core narrative of the sexual assault. The Court found the denial of the accused, juxtaposed against the positive and categorical identification by the victim, to be inherently weak and insufficient to overturn the conviction. The penalty of reclusion perpetua was upheld as proper for statutory rape committed prior to the effectivity of Republic Act No. 7659 .