G.R. No. L-25368 August 18, 1972
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. FIDEL GATMEN, ET AL., defendants, FIDEL GATMEN, BENJAMIN GUZMAN, JUANITO BOBILES, AGRIPINO BOBILES and ARSENIO TOLENTINO, defendants-appellants.

FACTS

In the evening of August 28, 1963, in Barrio Nanangduan, Pilar, Abra, Angel Domingo, his wife Venancia, and their son Rodolfo were brutally killed in their home. Investigation revealed they suffered multiple stab, incised, and gunshot wounds. Cash and jewelry were also taken. The subsequent probe led to the surrender and sworn statements of several accused, including Sauro Dumalanta and Julio Castro who were later discharged as state witnesses. Their detailed accounts, corroborated by physical evidence and the recovery of weapons, implicated a group of eight in a conspiracy to rob and kill the victims. The accused acted in concert, with some directly participating in the hacking and shooting while others served as lookouts.
An amended information charged the eight with robbery in band with triple homicide. The trial court convicted Fidel Gatmen, Benjamin Guzman, Juanito Bobiles, and Agripino Bobiles as charged, while finding Arsenio Tolentino guilty only of murder for the death of Venancia Domingo, noting his desistance from the other killings. The four main perpetrators were sentenced to death, prompting automatic review. Tolentino received reclusion perpetua and appealed. Agripino Bobiles was acquitted on appeal.

ISSUE

The primary issue was whether the guilt of the appellants was proven beyond reasonable doubt, and whether the penalties imposed were correct, particularly the death sentences and the modified liability of Arsenio Tolentino.

RULING

The Supreme Court affirmed the convictions with modifications. It upheld the finding of conspiracy based on the credible, corroborated, and spontaneous extrajudicial confessions of the accused, which were replete with details only the perpetrators would know. These confessions, given without coercion and corroborated by the corpus delicti, were admissible against the co-conspirators. The Court ruled that the crime committed was not a complex crime of robbery with homicide under Article 294 of the Revised Penal Code, as the original information erroneously suggested, but three separate crimes of murder with the attendant robbery. The intent to rob was established, and the killings were done with treachery and evident premeditation.
The penalty was accordingly rectified. For the murders of Angel, Venancia, and Rodolfo Domingo, Fidel Gatmen, Benjamin Guzman, and Juanito Bobiles were each sentenced to death for each victim. Arsenio Tolentino’s liability was correctly limited to the murder of Venancia Domingo, as he had a change of heart and desisted from the other killings, despite the conspiracy. His voluntary surrender warranted the penalty of reclusion perpetua. All convicted appellants were held solidarily liable for indemnity. Agripino Bobiles was acquitted as his guilt was not proven beyond reasonable doubt. The Court emphasized that while conspiracy generally makes each conspirator liable for all acts of the others, Tolentino’s actual desistance justified limiting his criminal responsibility.