G.R. No. 27972, October 31, 1927
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS, plaintiff-appellee, vs. FELIPE SANTIAGO, defendant-appellant.

Ponente: STREET, J.

FACTS

The appellant, Felipe Santiago, is the uncle by marriage of the complainant, Felicita Masilang, an 18-year-old girl. On November 23, 1926, Santiago asked Masilang to accompany him across a river in Gapan, Nueva Ecija. After crossing, he led her to a secluded spot about twenty paces from the highway, hidden by tall grass. There, despite her refusal and resistance, he had sexual intercourse with her by force and against her will. After the act, he took her to the house of his uncle, Agaton Santiago. That same afternoon, a Protestant minister was brought in to perform a marriage ceremony between Santiago and Masilang. After the ceremony, Santiago gave Masilang a few pesos and sent her home. The following day, Masilang reported the incident to her father, leading to the filing of a rape case. The trial court convicted Santiago of rape, treating the marriage ceremony as a ruse to evade criminal liability.

ISSUE

1. Whether the subsequent marriage ceremony between the appellant and the offended party constitutes a valid defense to the charge of rape.
2. Whether the aggravating circumstance of the crime being committed in an uninhabited place (*en despoblado*) is present.

RULING

1. No, the subsequent marriage ceremony is not a valid defense. The Court affirmed the trial court’s finding that the marriage was a mere ruse to escape criminal consequences. The circumstancesthe act of rape itself, the immediate procurement of a marriage ceremony under the control of the appellant’s family, and his conduct towards the victim before and after the ceremonydemonstrated a lack of bona fide intention to marry. The victim’s consent to the marriage was vitiated by duress, rendering the marriage void. Therefore, it posed no legal impediment to the prosecution for rape.
2. No, the aggravating circumstance of *en despoblado* is not present. The prosecution failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the crime was committed in an uninhabited or isolated place. The evidence showed the act occurred only a short distance from the Manila North Road, with an unoccupied house nearby and a resident (Florentina Cuizon) living not far away who even provided them with food. Following established doctrine, aggravating circumstances must be proven with the same degree of certainty as the elements of the crime itself.

DISPOSITIVE PORTION:
The judgment of the Court of First Instance convicting Felipe Santiago of rape and sentencing him to *reclusion temporal* for fourteen years, eight months, and one day, with the corresponding accessories, and ordering him to endow the victim with P500 and provide support for any potential offspring, is AFFIRMED. Costs against the appellant.