G.R. No. 235991 , March 18, 2021
People of the Philippines, Plaintiff-Appellee, vs. Aurelio Lira y Dulfo, Atanacio Barnobal y Lira and Rudrigo Tedranes y Mnu, Accused, Aurelio Lira y Dulfo, Accused-Appellant.

FACTS

Accused-appellant Aurelio Lira y Dulfo (Lira) and his co-accused Atanacio Barnobal and Rudrigo Tedranes were charged with two counts of Murder for the deaths of Barangay Captain Carlos Dulfo and his wife Elisa Dulfo on December 31, 2010. The Informations alleged the killings were committed with treachery, evident premeditation, and abuse of superior strength. Only Lira was arraigned and tried, as his co-accused remained at large. The prosecution’s eyewitness, Arnel Dulfo, testified that he saw Barnobal stop the victims’ motorcycle, grab Carlos, and shoot him twice. Lira then shot Carlos twice more. Tedranes shot Elisa, who was standing beside the highway. Arnel attributed the motive to politics, as Carlos had defeated Lira in a barangay election. The defense presented an alibi, with Lira claiming he was at his house the whole day, which was corroborated by witnesses Isidro Baleña and Edgar Dulfo. The Regional Trial Court (RTC) convicted Lira of two counts of Murder, finding treachery and abuse of superior strength present. The Court of Appeals (CA) affirmed Lira’s guilt but downgraded the crime to Homicide, ruling that the Informations did not specify the particular acts constituting the qualifying circumstances. The CA also modified the awarded damages.

ISSUE

Whether the Court of Appeals erred in downgrading the conviction from Murder to Homicide.

RULING

The Supreme Court denied the appeal, affirmed Lira’s conviction, but modified the CA decision by reinstating the RTC’s finding of Murder. The Court held that the Informations sufficiently alleged the qualifying circumstances of treachery and abuse of superior strength by stating the accused, armed with short firearms, conspiring and mutually helping one another, attacked and shot the victims, thereby employing means that directly and specially ensured the execution of the crime without risk to themselves. The eyewitness account established that the attack was sudden and unexpected, giving the victims no opportunity to defend themselves. The circumstance of abuse of superior strength was absorbed by treachery. The Court found the eyewitness testimony positive, straightforward, and credible, while the defense of alibi was weak and unsubstantiated. The penalty of reclusion perpetua for each count of Murder was imposed. The awards of damages were modified in accordance with prevailing jurisprudence: for each count, P75,000.00 as civil indemnity, P75,000.00 as moral damages, P75,000.00 as exemplary damages, and P50,000.00 as temperate damages, all with 6% interest per annum from finality until fully paid.