Case Digest (G.R. No. L-1549)
Facts:
The People of the Philippines v. Margarito Campos (alias Dodong), G.R. No. L-1549, November 02, 1948, the Supreme Court En Banc, Perfecto, J., writing for the Court.The respondent-appellant, Margarito Campos, was prosecuted by The People of the Philippines for acts committed during the Japanese occupation in 1942–1944. The prosecution presented numerous eyewitnesses who testified that Campos acted as an undercover in the service of the Japanese Kempei-Tai, participated in arrests of suspected guerrillas and civilians, assisted in their detention and interrogation, and, on July 21, 1944 (in the mountains of Toong), personally killed one Dodong Martinez after mass arrests in Mambaling and grouping at the Basak schoolhouse. Key prosecution witnesses included Jovito Soria (a teacher and signal officer for the resistance), his wife Abundia Soria, Tereso Sanchez and Antonio de la Cerna, who described arrests, beatings, torture, and the killing at Toong; several witnesses placed Campos among the undercovers armed and actively participating in these actions.
Campos and other defense witnesses testified that he had in fact been arrested, imprisoned, and harshly maltreated by the Japanese (including alleged court-martial and confinement in Bilibid), insisting he did not participate in the arrests or the killing, and denied being present at the Basak–Toong events. The record contains both testimony of his earlier confinement as a prisoner and testimony from locals identifying him as an active undercover who carried out arrests and violent acts under Japanese direction.
A trial court (the lower court) found Campos guilty of the charged offense and sentenced him to life imprisonment and a fine of P10,000 with costs. On appeal to the Supreme Court from the appealed decis...(Pro-only)
Issues:
- Was the evidence sufficient to establish that Margarito Campos committed the crime charged under Article 1944 of the Revised Penal Code?
- Was the penalty imposed by the lower court proper and correct...(Pro-only)
Ruling:
- (Pro-only)
Ratio:
- (Pro-only)
Doctrine:
- (Pro-only)