G.R. No. 194382 ; June 10, 2013
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, Plaintiff-Appellee, vs. GLORIA CALUMBRES y AUDITOR, Accused-Appellant.

FACTS

On April 6, 2004, SPO1 Reynaldo Dela Victoria, based on an informant’s tip about a drug sale in Sto. Niño, Barangay 31, Cagayan de Oro City, hired a poseur-buyer and gave him five marked twenty-peso bills. SPO1 Dela Victoria positioned himself to observe the transaction. He saw the poseur-buyer hand something to Gloria Calumbres and receive something in return. After the pre-arranged signal, he apprehended Calumbres, recovered the marked money from her, and retrieved a plastic sachet from the poseur-buyer. The substance was later confirmed to be methamphetamine hydrochloride (shabu). SPO1 Dela Victoria brought Calumbres to his office, recorded the incident, and prepared a request for laboratory analysis. He claimed to have taken a photograph of the confiscated items, but it was not developed due to budget constraints. He conducted the inventory alone without the accused or other required witnesses.
Calumbres presented a different defense. She testified that she was arrested for pickpocketing a wallet at the ACCP Used Clothing Enterprise (ukay-ukay) and was brought to Precinct 2 at the Cogon Police Station. There, SPO1 Dela Victoria investigated her and promised her release in exchange for three cell phones, which she could not provide. Her testimony was corroborated by store employee Relian Abarrientos, who witnessed the pickpocketing incident and her subsequent detention at the police station. The police blotter at Precinct 2 recorded her arrest for pickpocketing.
The Regional Trial Court convicted Calumbres of illegal sale of dangerous drugs under Section 5, Article II of Republic Act No. 9165 and sentenced her to life imprisonment and a fine. The Court of Appeals affirmed the decision.

ISSUE

Whether the prosecution proved the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt for the illegal sale of shabu.

RULING

The Supreme Court ACQUITTED Gloria Calumbres. The prosecution failed to prove her guilt beyond reasonable doubt due to serious irregularities and inconsistencies that cast doubt on the corpus delicti and the integrity of the evidence.
1. Doubtful Circumstances of Arrest: The police blotter from Precinct 2 showed Calumbres was arrested and detained for pickpocketing on the same day and within hours of the alleged drug sale. There was no record of her release. This discrepancy between the initial arrest record and the subsequent drug charge created serious doubt about her culpability for the drug offense.
2. Credibility and Procedural Lapses of the Arresting Officer: SPO1 Dela Victoria, the lone prosecution witness, exhibited significant lapses:
He presented only one of the five marked bills in court.
He failed to present the alleged photograph of the confiscated items.
* He conducted the inventory of seized items alone, in blatant violation of the witness requirements under Section 21 of RA 9165.
* His testimony revealed the informant did not identify Calumbres as the seller, making it incomprehensible how the instantly hired poseur-buyer could have identified her.
3. Failure to Establish Corpus Delicti and Chain of Custody: The “solo performance” by SPO1 Dela Victoria in the apprehension, custody, and handling of the evidence, without following the chain of custody rule, left the identity and integrity of the seized drug in serious doubt. The Court could not be certain the sachet presented in court was the same one allegedly seized from Calumbres.
4. Presumption of Regularity Cannot Overcome Presumption of Innocence: The trial court relied on the presumption of regularity in the performance of official duty to convict. The Supreme Court held this presumption cannot, by itself, overcome the constitutional presumption of innocence. The prosecution’s evidence was riddled with inconsistencies and procedural flaws that failed to obliterate all reasonable doubt as to the accused’s guilt.
Therefore, Gloria Calumbres was acquitted and ordered immediately released from detention.