GR 238212; (January, 2020) (Digest)
G.R. No. 238212 , January 27, 2020.
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, PLAINTIFF-APPELLEE, V. CHRISTIAN DELA CRUZ Y DAYO AND ARSENIO FORBES Y DAYO, ACCUSED-APPELLANTS.
FACTS
This case stemmed from two Informations for Illegal Sale and Illegal Possession of Dangerous Drugs under Republic Act No. 9165 . On October 6, 2015, following a prior drug operation, police set up an entrapment against accused-appellant Christian Dela Cruz, identified as a supplier. PO1 Michael Disono acted as poseur-buyer. Dela Cruz arrived on a motorcycle driven by accused-appellant Arsenio Forbes. Dela Cruz alighted, handed Forbes a sachet saying, “Ito, para hindi ka mainip,” and then proceeded to sell a separate sachet to PO1 Disono. Upon consummation of the sale, the buy-bust team arrested Dela Cruz. PO1 Disono also ordered Forbes’s arrest, having seen him receive the sachet from Dela Cruz. A sachet was recovered from Forbes’s right pocket. The seized items were marked at the place of arrest. The team then proceeded to the police station where inventory and photography were conducted in the presence of Barangay Kagawad Armando S. Zabala and DOJ Representative Villamor Sanchez. Forensic examination confirmed the sachets contained methamphetamine hydrochloride. Both accused-appellants denied the charges, claiming they were arbitrarily arrested and framed.
ISSUE
Whether the Court of Appeals erred in affirming the trial court’s conviction of accused-appellants for Illegal Sale and Illegal Possession of Dangerous Drugs.
RULING
The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal and affirmed the convictions. The Court held that all elements of the crimes were proven beyond reasonable doubt. Dela Cruz was caught in flagrante delicto selling shabu to the poseur-buyer. Forbes was found to be in conscious possession of shabu received from Dela Cruz. The defense of denial and frame-up was uncorroborated and self-serving. Furthermore, the chain of custody was sufficiently established. The items were marked immediately after seizure. The inventory and photography at the police station were done in the presence of an elected public official and a DOJ representative, complying with the witness requirement under RA 10640. The integrity and evidentiary value of the corpus delicti were thus preserved. The trial court’s assessment of witness credibility was accorded respect.