Facts:

• The case involves the People of the Philippines as the plaintiff-appellee against Blademir Devaras, Pablo Devaras, and Ronilo Caisek as the accused-appellants.
• The incident occurred on July 10, 1990, in Palo, Leyte, where pedicab driver Efren Verzosa and his passenger Felix Verzosa were brutally attacked and killed by the appellants.
• The appellants were allegedly acting as "bantay-bayan" (community watchmen) during the attack.
• Witness Raul Animos testified that the appellants had been drinking tuba at Pablo Devaras' house before their patrol.
• At Daguitan bridge, Blademir Devaras attacked Efren with a bolo, while Ronilo Caisek assaulted Felix.
• After the murders, Blademir and Pablo disposed of Efren's body by throwing it over the bridge, while Ronilo was coerced into helping dispose of Felix's body.
• Ruel Animos was arrested during the police investigation and implicated the three appellants.
• The trial court, led by Judge Pedro S. Espina, found Blademir guilty of murder for Efren's death, Ronilo guilty for Felix's murder, and Pablo as an accessory.
• Blademir and Ronilo were sentenced to reclusion perpetua and ordered to pay P50,000.00 in civil indemnity to the victims' heirs, while Pablo received a lesser sentence.

Issue:

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Ruling:

• The court ruled that the trial court did not err in convicting the appellants of murder, affirming the presence of treachery in the crime.
• The court upheld that the determination of who should be prosecuted is at the discretion of the prosecutor...(Unlock)

Ratio:

• The Supreme Court highlighted that the evidence showed Blademir and Ronilo attacked unarmed victims with bolos, indicating treachery, which qualifies the crime as murder under Article 248 of the Revised Penal Code.
• The court noted that without treachery, the killings would be classified as homicide.
• Regarding the second issue, the court reite...continue reading