G.R. No.

L-36461 June 29, 1984 with the use of 'balisong', one of the accused was 64, 11 1973). They proceeded to the Pasay City
provided with, and by means of force, threats and Public Market. As they were going up the stairs
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, intimidation employed upon the latter, did then and leading to the Teresa and Sons Restaurant,
plaintiff-appellee, there wilfully, unlawfully and feloniously take, steal Remedios, who was was about an arms-length ahead
and rob away from one Crispulo P. Alega, one Seiko of Crispulo suddenly heard the dropping of her folders
vs. brand men's wrist watch (recovered); and the said and other things, being carried by Crispulo. When she
accused in accordance with and pursuant to their looked back, she saw a man — later Identified as
HERNANDO DIO, accused-appellant. conspiracy, and in order to carry out their avowed Danilo Tobias but still at large — twisting the neck of
purpose, with intent to kill did then and there wilfully, Crispulo, while the appellant was holding his
The Solicitor General for plaintiff- unlawfully and feloniously attack, assault and stab for (Crispulo's) two hands (pp. 56-57, 61, tsn., Id.). The
appellee. several times Crispulo P. Alega, and which "balisong" appellant and his companion tried to divest Crispulo
was directly aimed at the vital portions of the body of of his "Seiko" wrist watch, but Crispulo resisted their
Luis R. Feria for accused-appellant. said Crispulo P. Alega, thus performing all the acts of attempt and fought the robbers. At this juncture, the
execution causing his instantaneous death. man who was twisting the neck of Crispulo stabbed
DIGESTED BY: ROMEO L. CATAPANG III (Expediente, p. 68.) the latter on the left side of his chest. Crispulo ran
ABAD SANTOS, J.: down the stairs followed by Remedies who shouted
Accused Hernando Dio pleaded not guilty when he for help. When he reached the front of the Pasay
Automatic review of a decision of the defunct Circuit was arraigned and after trial the court rendered the Commercial Bank he fell down and expired. At the
Criminal Court, 7th Judicial District, which imposed following judgment: time of his death, the "Seiko" watch was strapped to
the death penalty. WHEREFORE, finding the accused, Hernando Dio, his wrist. (pp. 57-61, tsn., Id., pp. 7-9, tsn., Jan. 22,
Guilty, beyond reasonable doubt, of the crime of 1973).
An information for robbery with homicide was filed on
October 1, 1971, against Danilo Tobias and a John Robbery with Homicide as defined under Article 294 An autopsy conducted on the victim's body by Dr.
Doe. The order to arrest Tobias was returned of the Revised Penal Code, as charged in the Ricardo Ibarola medicolegal officer of the NBI
unserved and he is still on the "Wanted Persons Amended Information, the Court hereby sentences revealed that the cause of death was a stab wound at
Files." him to suffer the penalty of DEATH; to indemnify the the region below his left breast which penetrated the
heirs of the victim, Crispulo Alega the amount of heart. Said doctor opined that judging from the natural
On December 7, 1971, the information was amended P12,000.00; to pay moral damages in the amount of appearance of the stab wound, it must have been
to name Hernando Dio as the John Doe, the appellant P10,000.00 and another P10,000.00, as exemplary caused by a single-bladed pointed instrument (pp. 6,
herein. As amended, the information reads: damages; and to pay the costs. (Id., pp. 105-106.) 13-14, tsn., Jan. 11, 1973; Exh. C and C-1, p. 87,
That on or about the 24th day of July 1971, in Pasay The People's version of the facts is as follows: rec.). The necropsy report (Exh. A, p. 85, rec.) stated
City, Philippines and within the jurisdiction of this that the decease sustained the following injuries:
Honorable Court, the above-named accused Danilo At about noontime on July 24, 1971, Crispulo Alega,
a civil engineer by profession working at the Sugar Abrasions: right zygomatic region, 0.6 x 0.4 infralabial
Tobias @ Danny Kulot and Hernando Dio @ Way region, right side 1.7 x 1.4 come forearm right, upper
Kaon, conspiring and confederating together and Construction Company, with a salary of more than
P500.00 a month went to the Southeastern College, third, posterolateral aspect, 0.6 x 0.4 clean and left,
mutually helping one another, with intent to gain and lower third, posterior aspect, 0.4 x 0.2 come right
without the knowledge and consent of the owner, and Pasay City to fetch his girlfriend, Remedios Maniti, a
third year high school student thereat (pp. 55, 59, 63-
knee, 0.6 x 0.4 come right leg, upper third, anterior After a careful, considered and conscientious witnesses, having had the advantage of observing
aspect, 1.4 x 0.8 examination of the evidence adduced in the instant their demeanor and manner of testifying, should not
case, undersigned counsel is constrained to conclude be disturbed in the absence of strong and cogent
Incise wounds, neck, left supers-lateral aspect, two in that the findings of fact of the trial court, upholding the reasons therefor, applies fully to the case at bar. No
number, 2.5 and 1.2 crime in lengths, both superficial version of the prosecution as against that of the such reasons can be found herein.
Stab wound: left inframammary region, level of the 5th defense, must have to be sustained. As against the
sole and uncorroborated testimony of appellant The same observations may be made with respect to
intercostal space along the parasternal line, 6.0 cm. the testimonies of Patrolman Rimorin and Sgt. de los
from the anterior midline, 0.5 crime below the left merely denying any participation in the commission of
the crime imputed to him (while admitting that he was Santos. Moreover, as has been held by this
nipple, elliptical in shape, 3.0 cm. long extended Honorable Court, where the prosecution witnesses,
laterally by 3.0 crime long rising slightly downwards, present at the scene of the crime), there is a
formidable array of evidence against him consisting of being government employees who testified as to what
medially edges, clean cut, sutured, medial extremity transpired in the performance of their duties, were
of which is blunt and lateral extremity, sharp; directed the clear and convincing testimony of Remedios
Maniti, who was in the company of the deceased at neutral and disinterested and had no reason to falsely
upwards, medially and backwards involving, among testify against the accused, and did not subject him to
others, the soft tissues, thru the 5th intercostal the time he was killed and an eyewitness to the entire
incident; the extra-judicial written confession of any violence, torture or bodily harm, their testimonies
muscles, grazing the 6th rib superiorly, perforating the should be given more weight than that of the accused
left pleural cavity only, into the middle mediastinum by defendant-appellant (Exhibit D) admitting
participation in the commission of the crime; the (P. v. Pereto, 21 SCRA 1469: P. v. Del Castillo, 25
penetrating the pericardium antero-inferiorly, SCRA 716.)
perforating the interventricular system and testimony of Patrolman Arturo Rimorin who
penetrating the left ventricle of the heart at its apical conducted the investigation of, and before whom Then there is the extrajudicial confession of
portions, approximate depth 11.0 cm. Exhibit D was executed and signed by, defendant- defendant-appellant, Exhibit D. True it is that,
appellant, as well straight the testimony of Sgt. belatedly during the trial, appellant claimed that his
After the appellant's arrest on October 24, 1972, he Geronimo de los Santos of the Pasay Police to whom answers appearing in Exhibit D were given because
was investigated at the Detective Bureau of the Pasay defendant-appellant orally admitted that he held the he was afraid as he was intimidated and struck on the
City Police Department and gave a statement (Exh. victim's hands although he had no part in the actual buttock with a long piece of wood (pp. 32-34, t.s.n.
D, p. 90, rec.) in the presence of Pat. Arturo Rimorin stabbing of the deceased. Ses. of January 22, 1973). It is submitted that this last-
admitting that on the date and nine of the incident, he minute, desperate and uncorroborated claim falls flat
and his co-accused, Danilo Tobias administrative With respect to the testimony of the eyewitness
Remedios Maniti there is absolutely nothing in the in the face not only of the presumption of
Kardong Kaliwa alias Danny Kulot, held up a man and voluntariness in the execution of confessions, but also
a woman; that they did not get the watch of the man; record (except perhaps that she was the sweetheart
of the deceased) to show, or even hint, that she had of the testimony of Patrolman Rimorin to the effect
that he held the victim's hands but the latter was able that Exhibit D was executed voluntarily and that
to free himself; that Danny Kulot stabbed the man, any reasons to perjure herself by falsely incriminating
defendant-appellant in such a grievous crime, no defendant-appellant was never maltreated (pp. 26,
that when the victim ran, they also ran away; and that 31-32, t.s.n. Ses. of January 11, 1973), and the
he did not know what happened to the victim (Exhs. bias, interest or prejudice against the latter as would
move or induce her to faithlessly accuse him of a latter's own admission that before he signed Exhibit
D, D-1, D-2, D-3, D-4 and D-5, p. 90, rec.; pp. 27-3 1, D, its contents were first read to him in Tagalog and
tsn., Jan. 11, 1973). (Brief, pp. 2-6.) crime which he had not committed. More than ever,
the time-honored ruling of this Honorable Court, too that he fully understood the same (pp. 24, t.s.n. Ses.
Atty. Luis R. Feria, counsel de oficio of the appellant, elemental to require citations, that the findings of the of January 22, 1973), and his further admission that
states: trial court on the question of credibility of the he has not filed any case against those who had
allegedly maltreated him (p. 33, t.s.n, Id.). Moreover, their criminal venture of divesting the victim of his mitigating nor aggravating circumstance, the penalty
where the alleged confession reveals spontaneity of wrist watch so as to constitute the consummated should be applied in its medium period, i.e. 18 years,
the declarations belying the claim that they were crime of robbery. Indeed, as adverted to earlier, when 8 months and 1 day to 20 years. The Indeterminate
concocted or dictated by the police, the court win the victim expired, the 'Seiko' watch was still securely Sentence Law has also to be applied.
reject the case that the confession was involuntary (P. strapped to his wrist (p. 59, t.s.n., Jan. 11, 1973). The
v. Castro, 11 SCRA 699).lwphl@itç (Brief, pp. 3-5.) killing of Crispulo Alega may be considered as merely WHEREFORE, the judgment of the trial court is
incidental to and an offshoot of the plan to carry out hereby modified; the appellant is found guilty beyond
Notwithstanding the foregoing factual admission, Atty. the robbery, which however was not consummated reasonable doubt of the special complex crime of
Feria makes the following assignment of errors: because of the resistance offered by the deceased. attempted robbery with homicide and he is sentenced
Consequently, this case would properly come under to suffer an indeterminate penalty of 10 years and 1
1. THE TRIAL COURT ERRED IN day of prision mayor as minimum to 20 years of
CONVICTING DEFENDANT- APPELLANT OF THE the provision of Art. 297 of the Revised Penal Code
which states that — reclusion temporal as maximum, to indemnify the
SPECIAL COMPLEX CRIME OF ROBBERY WITH heirs of Crispulo Alega in the amount of P30,000.00,
HOMICIDE AS DEFINED AND PENALIZED UNDER When by reason or on occasion of an attempted or and to pay one-half of the costs. SO ORDERED.
ART. 294, PAR. 1, OF THE REVISED PENAL CODE. frustrated robbery a homicide is committed, the
2. EVEN ASSUMING THAT THE CRIME person guilty of such offenses shall be punished by
COMMITTED BY DEFENDANT-APPELLANT IS reclusion temporal in its maximum period to reclusion
ROBBERY WITH HOMICIDE, THE TRIAL COURT perpetua, unless the homicide committed shall
ERRED IN SENTENCING HIM TO SUFFER THE deserve a higher penalty under the provisions of this
DEATH PENALTY. Code. (Brief, pp. 5-6.)

We have scrutinized the record, particularly the In his second assignment of error the appellant claims
testimonial evidence, and indeed there is no doubt that the information does not allege any aggravating
that the appellant had a hand in the death of Crispulo circumstance nor was any proved during the trial.
Alega. There remains to be considered, however, the Again the Solicitor General states:
claims of the appellant which are made in the
assignment of errors. We likewise agree with the contention of counsel in
his second assigned error that the evidence
The appellant claims in his first assignment of error presented by the prosecution did not show the
that he should not have been convicted of the special attendance of any aggravating circumstance in the
complex crime of robbery with homicide because the commands of the crime and neither did the court a
robbery was not consummated. He states that there quo make any finding in this respect (pp. 7-8,
was only an attempted robbery. appellant's brief). (Id, p. 6.)
The Solicitor General states: The crime committed by the appellant is attempted
... We are constrained to agree with defense' robbery with homicide and the penalty prescribed by
contention. The evidence adduced show that the law is reclusion temporal in its maximum period to
appellant and his companion were unsuccessful in reclusion perpetua. Since there was no attendant