GR L 2300; (January, 1906) (Digest)
FACTS:
Antonio Mallari, Juan Salas, Maximo Salas (alias Temo), Ambrosio de los Reyes, Camilo Mercado, Eusebio Feliciano, and Severo Panlilio were charged with the crime of “robbery in an armed band.” The trial court convicted them only of the simple crime of robbery under Article 503 of the Penal Code. The defendants appealed their conviction.
ISSUE:
Whether the trial court erred in convicting the appellants of simple robbery instead of the more serious offense of robbery in an armed band, as charged and proven.
RULING:
Yes. The Supreme Court found that the evidence established beyond a reasonable doubt that the robbery was committed by an armed band. Therefore, the appellants should have been convicted of the crime as charged under Article 504 of the Penal Code, which prescribes a higher penalty. The Court reversed the trial court’s judgment.
The appellants (except Juan Salas and Camilo Mercado, who died pending appeal) were found guilty of robbery in an armed band. Aggravating circumstancesnamely, commission at night, in the dwelling of the victim, and the abuse of public office by some appellants who were municipal policemenwere considered. Each surviving appellant was sentenced to ten years of presidio mayor, with accessory penalties, a share of the costs, and joint liability for restitution.