G.R. No. 178322. June 29, 2009.
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, Appellee, vs. GENEROSO ROLIDA y MORENO @ KA DAVID/KA RAQUEL, Appellant.

FACTS

Appellant Generoso Rolida y Moreno, along with several others who remained at large, was charged with Murder for the killing of Froilan Roman, a CAFGU member, on August 27, 2001, in General Luna, Quezon. The prosecution established that around 8:45 p.m., four armed men kicked open the door of the victim’s house, tied his hands, hit him with a rifle, and pulled him outside. While kneeling with a gun at his neck, the victim begged for his life. His assailants stated he must pay with his life for having taken one. The family heard gunshots, and the armed men left shouting, “Mabuhay! Tagumpay ang NPA!” The victim’s widow and two daughters positively identified appellant as one of the assailants, noting his uncovered face and a scar. Marciano Endiape, a former NPA member, testified that the killing was planned in a meeting on August 20, 2001, for the victim’s alleged role in a military raid, and that appellant attended and left for the mission on August 24, 2001, returning on August 28, 2001. The victim died from multiple gunshot wounds. Appellant denied involvement, claiming he was asleep at his house in a different town at the time. The Regional Trial Court convicted appellant of Murder, qualified by treachery and aggravated by evident premeditation, and initially imposed the death penalty. The Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction but modified the penalty to reclusion perpetua pursuant to Republic Act No. 9346 and adjusted the damages.

ISSUE

Whether the Court of Appeals correctly affirmed appellant’s conviction for Murder qualified by treachery and aggravated by evident premeditation.

RULING

Yes. The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeals. The collective acts of appellant and his cohorts before, during, and after the shooting indicated a common design to kill, establishing conspiracy. The deliberate use of high-powered firearms and the attack at night while the victim was asleep and defenseless constituted treachery, which absorbed the circumstance of abuse of superior strength. The testimony of Endiape established evident premeditation, as there was a sufficient interval between the planning on August 24, 2001, and the execution on August 27, 2001, for cool reflection. Appellant’s defense of alibi failed as he did not prove it was physically impossible for him to be at the crime scene. The penalty of reclusion perpetua was proper under R.A. No. 9346, and appellant is ineligible for parole. The awards of damages were modified: civil indemnity was increased to ₱75,000; moral damages of ₱50,000 and exemplary damages of ₱25,000 were sustained; and temperate damages of ₱25,000 were awarded in lieu of the proven actual damages of ₱18,320.