GR L 15023; (March, 1961) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-15023; March 29, 1961
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. ALFREDO ALBAN alias FRED, defendant-appellant.
FACTS
On the night of July 16, 1956, two masked men entered the house of Teofilo Boado in Agoo, La Union. The victim’s wife, Marcela Dacanay, was awakened and lit two kerosene lamps. Despite a handkerchief masking the lower part of his face, Marcela positively identified one intruder as Alfredo Alban, whom she knew from previous occasions, and saw him holding a small, white gun. Shots were fired, and Teofilo fell. As neighbors and police arrived, the dying victim explicitly identified “Fred,” the son of Juan and Paer, as his assailant. This statement was recorded by a patrolman, though unsigned due to the victim’s grave condition. Teofilo later died at the hospital. The defense presented an alibi, claiming Alban was at a neighbor’s house listening to the radio and later at his uncle’s home during the incident.
ISSUE
The core issue is whether the prosecution evidence, particularly the identification by the eyewitness and the dying declaration of the victim, is sufficient to overcome the defense of alibi and sustain a conviction for murder.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction. The legal logic rests on the strength of the prosecution’s identification evidence and the admissibility of the victim’s statement as part of the res gestae. The Court found Marcela Dacanay’s testimony clear, positive, and credible. The mask did not conceal Alban’s full identity, and the kerosene lamps provided adequate illumination. Her prior familiarity with the appellant bolstered her identification. The victim’s immediate outcry naming Alban was correctly admitted as part of the res gestae, being a spontaneous declaration made under startling circumstances without opportunity for fabrication. The Court dismissed the alibi as weak, noting it failed to prove the physical impossibility of Alban’s presence at the crime scene. The absence of established motive was deemed inconsequential given the direct and convincing evidence of identity. The crime was murder qualified by treachery, as the unarmed victim was shot suddenly. The aggravating circumstances of dwelling and disguise were present, but for lack of sufficient votes, the penalty imposed was reclusion perpetua, not death. The trial court’s decision was thus affirmed.