GR 193670; (December, 2014) (Digest)
G.R. No. 193670, December 3, 2014
People of the Philippines, Plaintiff-Appellee, vs. Venerando Dela Cruz y Sebastian, Accused-Appellant.
FACTS
On July 25, 2003, police asset Warren Ebio, acting on information, arranged a drug purchase via phone. A buy-bust team was formed, with Ebio as the poseur-buyer using marked money. At the meeting place in front of the barangay hall of Lerma, Naga City, appellant arrived on a motorcycle. Ebio gave the marked money, and appellant handed over two plastic sachets containing white crystalline substance. Upon Ebio’s signal, the team apprehended appellant, recovering the marked money and a third plastic sachet from him. PO3 Bongon immediately marked the two sold sachets as “RSB-1” and “RSB-2,” and the third recovered sachet as “RSB-3,” before turning them over to SPO1 Antonio. The sachets were submitted to the crime laboratory, where Forensic Chemist Josephine Macura Clemen found the contents positive for shabu. Appellant was charged with Violation of Section 5, Article II of Republic Act No. 9165 (illegal sale of dangerous drugs). Appellant denied the charge, claiming he was framed while on his way to his parents’ house, and that he was forced to cooperate in another case. The Regional Trial Court convicted appellant, sentencing him to life imprisonment and a fine of ₱500,000.00, which the Court of Appeals affirmed.
ISSUE
1. Whether the failure to specify the exact location where the seized drugs were marked constitutes a fatal gap in the chain of custody.
2. Whether the absence of testimony on a prior agreement regarding the quantity of shabu casts doubt on the legitimacy of the buy-bust operation.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction with modification regarding parole eligibility.
1. On the chain of custody: The Court ruled that the prosecution established an unbroken chain of custody. While the exact location of marking was not specified, it was reasonable to conclude it occurred during apprehension, in transit, or at the police station. The marking was done immediately by PO3 Bongon upon confiscation. The seized items never left his custody until turned over to SPO1 Antonio, were then submitted to the crime laboratory, examined, and presented in court. The integrity and evidentiary value of the corpus delicti were preserved.
2. On the agreement for sale: The Court held that the illegal sale is consummated by the exchange of the dangerous drug for consideration. Ebio’s testimony that appellant asked for payment and then handed over the shabu after receiving the ₱1,500.00 was sufficient to prove the sale. A prior agreement on quantity is not an essential element of the crime.
The Court also rejected appellant’s defense of frame-up for lack of strong and convincing evidence. The penalty imposed by the lower courts—life imprisonment and a ₱500,000.00 fine—was proper under RA 9165, as amended by RA 9346, with the modification that appellant shall not be eligible for parole.