G.R. No. L-8799; October 22, 1913
THE UNITED STATES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. FABIO SORIANO, ET AL., defendant-appellants.

The defendants Fabio Soriano, Aniceto de la Cruz, Benigno Madrigo, and Felicisimo Soliven were charged with murder (asesinato) for the killing of Otto Lemke on the night of September 12, 1912, in San Juan de Guimba, Nueva Ecija. The prosecution established a motive of resentment against Lemke, who was an overseer on the hacienda where they all lived. The evidence included the testimonies of witnesses Gregorio Inepto, Felix Medrano, and Patricio Medrano. Inepto testified he was forced to accompany the accused to Lemke’s house, where the accused demanded money and rice, and upon Lemke’s refusal, attacked and killed him. Patricio Medrano testified the accused invited him to join in killing Lemke and later bound him and his father before proceeding to Lemke’s house. Felix Medrano corroborated hearing cries for help. Two of the accused, Soliven and de la Cruz, confessed to the crime during the preliminary investigation but recanted at trial, alleging their confessions were coerced by Constabulary authorities, a claim denied by the justice of the peace. The trial court convicted all four. Soriano was sentenced to death, while de la Cruz, Madrigo, and Soliven were sentenced to cadena perpetua.

Whether the trial court erred in convicting the appellants based on the testimonies of alleged accomplices and the recanted confessions.

No. The conviction is affirmed but modified as to Soriano’s penalty. The Supreme Court held that the testimonies of accomplices, while to be received with caution, are competent and admissible and can sustain a conviction if it satisfies the court beyond reasonable doubt. The court found the testimonies of the prosecution witnesses credible and corroborated by the voluntary confessions of two accused. The appellants’ defenses, including alibi and claims of coercion, were unsubstantiated. The court also found that the trial court correctly applied the extenuating circumstance under Article 11 of the Penal Code, as amended by Act No. 2142, to de la Cruz, Madrigo, and Soliven. However, the same leniency should have been extended to Soriano. Thus, the death penalty imposed on Soriano is modified to cadena perpetua. The judgment is affirmed with this modification.