Facts:

• Defendant-Appellant: Celedonio de la Cruz
• Crime: Abduction with rape
• Offended Party: Toribia Minaos, a 14-year-old maiden
• Incident:
  • Minaos went out to buy bread and engaged in conversation at Gay Square, Iloilo.
  • De la Cruz took Minaos in his car with other passengers to San Miguel.
  • After other passengers alighted, De la Cruz continued with Minaos and eventually stopped in an uninhabited place.
  • Allegedly, De la Cruz had sexual intercourse with Minaos.
  • De la Cruz returned Minaos to Iloilo and left her at Eagle Cinematograph Theatre.
  • Policeman Pedro Mallo found Minaos and took her to the police station.
• Lower Court Sentence: Seventeen years, four months, and one day of reclusion temporal, including accessory penalties and costs of the action.

Issue:

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Ruling:

• Supreme Court Decision:
  • Reversed the lower court's decision.
  • Acquitted Celedonio d...(Unlock)

Ratio:

• Testimony of Toribia Minaos:
  • Found unworthy of belief regarding the use of force.
  • Improbable scenario at Gay Square, a public place, for De la Cruz to forcibly place Minaos in his car without attracting attention.
• Defendant’s Testimony:
  • De la Cruz's account deemed more credible: mutual agreement to ride, returned to Iloilo, entered a cinema, and separated thereafter.
• Lack of Corroborative Evidence:
  • No evidence to support the claim of rape.
  • Minaos' uncorroborated testimony insufficient to prove non-consent.
• Legal Conclusion:
  • Act did not constitute abduction with consent under Article 446 of the Penal Code.
  • No intention to take Minaos away from the authority of her master or conceal her whereabouts for a significant period.
  • Criminal law does not punish mere amorous appointments.
• Outcome:...continue reading