G.R. No. L-13030 - People vs. Mitra

Case Digest (G.R. No. L-13030)
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Facts:

Charges and procedural background
Accused Jose Oliva, Francisco Mitra, Juan Malabanan, Adriano Carpio, and Paulino Mansit were charged before the Court of First Instance of Batangas with the crime of murder.
The information alleged that on or about January 25, 1950, during nighttime, purposely sought to better accomplish impunity, the accused conspiring and confederating together, helping one another, with three of them being armed with firearms, with evident premeditation and treachery, did willfully, unlawfully and feloniously, with deliberate intent to kill Dr. Maximino Maloles, shoot him several times with a carbine, causing fatal gunshot wounds on his chest.
The information further alleged aggravating circumstances:

1) use of a motor vehicle to facilitate the commission of the crime; and 2) the crime was committed in consideration of a price, reward or promise.

Juan Malabanan was discharged from the information upon motion of the prosecution so that he might be a state witness.
Jose Oliva died during the trial, and upon proper petition, the lower court ordered the dismissal of the case as against him.
As to the remaining accused, the Court rendered judgment convicting Paulino Mansit and Francisco Mitra as principals, and Adriano Carpio as an accomplice of murder.

Trial court judgment
The trial court found evident premeditation as the qualifying circumstance and considered that the crime was perpetrated by using a jeep and with treachery, without any mitigating circumstance to offset any of the accused.
The trial court imposed:

1) for Paulino Mansit and Francisco Mitra: reclusion perpetua; 2) for Adriano Carpio: an indeterminate imprisonment of not less than eight (8) years and one (1) day of prision mayor, but not more than fourteen (14) years, eight (8) months and one (1) day of reclusion temporal.

The trial court ordered Mansit and Mitra and Carpio to jointly and severally indemnify the heirs of Dr. Maximino Maloles in the sum of P6,000.00, imposed accessory penalties, and ordered each accused to pay one-fifth of the costs.

Appeal and prosecution’s version of the killing
Accused Mitra, Mansit and Carpio appealed the judgment.
The prosecution evidence established that on the night of January 25, 1950, around 7:00 o’clock, while Dr. Maximino Maloles and his wife Rufina Vda. de Maloles were taking supper inside their store and restaurant in the poblacion of Santo Tomas, Batangas, a person entered to buy apples.
Shortly after the person left, successive gunshots were fired directed at the doctor.
Mrs. Maloles turned toward the window where the firing came from and saw two armed persons who later ran toward the back part of the store.
Dr. Maloles was heard to have exclaimed after the shooting: “support me because I am fatally hit”, and he further declared that he was shot by his political enemies.
Dr. Maloles died from his wounds while on the way to the hospital at Tanauan, Batangas.
An autopsy conducted by Dr. Rosalino V. Reyes of the National Bureau of Investigation the following day revealed cause of death as profuse hemorrhage due to gunshot wounds on both lungs.

Investigation history prior to the confession
The Philippine Constabulary investigated the same evening of the incident and the following morning, but failed to overtake the culprits.
Investigators found empty shells at the scene but failed to identify the killers.
On January 26, 1950, National Bureau of Investigation agents conducted another investigation, including Jose Oliva, but found no sufficient evidence.
The progress report noted residents were reluctant to give information because of fear of reprisal and bodily harm.
On January 19, 1952, National Bureau of Investigation received information from Benjamin Maloles that Mrs. Maloles received a letter from Pacifico Calinawan, a prisoner of Muntinlupa penitentiary, pointing to Leon Malabanan and Ruben Torres as the killers; a new investigation failed again.
In November 1954, Lt. Emilio N. Cea received confidential information from an informer in Muntinlupa that a prisoner named Paulino Mansit knew something about the killing.
In early December 1954, Lt. Cea attempted to interview Mansit in Muntinlupa but failed because Mansit was then in the Iwahig Penal Colony.
On December 14, 1954, Lt. Cea met Paulino Mansit, and Mansit admitted participation and revealed the identities of others; the revelations were contained in an extra-judicial confession (Exhibit K).

Filing of the complaint and state witness testimony
Based on Mansit’s confession and Lt. Cea’s report, a complaint was filed in the Justice of the Peace Court of Santo Tomas, Batangas on March 29, 1955, charging Jose Oliva, Francisco Mitra, Juan Malabanan, Adriano Carpio and Paulino Mansit with murder for the killing of Maximino Maloles.
Juan Malabanan, discharged as a state witness, testified in detail as to the plot to liquidate and kill Dr. Maximino Maloles.

Juan Malabanan’s narrative of the conspiracy and execution
On the morning of January 23, 1950, Juan Malabanan testified that he was invited by Francisco Mitra and companions to go with them to a hut in barrio San Pablo, Santo Tomas, Batangas.
While resting inside the hut, Paulino Mansit and Jose Oliva arrived.
Mitra and Malabanan were told to confer with Oliva, and Oliva sought aid of those around him in the liquidation of Dr. Maloles, whom Oliva identified as an enemy of the Huks and as his political enemy.
The date designated for the commission was January 25, 1950.
Oliva gave Paulino Mansit P250.00 as advance partial payment for executing the intended crime, with the assurance that the balance would be paid later.
Malabanan received P50.00 out of the P250.00.
The group proceeded to barrio Santa Elena, Santo Tomas, Batangas where they stayed until January 25.
On the morning of the fateful date, Malabanan, Mitra and Mansit were all fully armed.
They went to San Pablo and waited for Oliva.
Oliva arrived, and during a conference Oliva stated that in the afternoon a jeep driven by Adriano Carpio would fetch the party from behind the barrio chapel of San Pablo to the town of Santo Tomas.
As planned, the jeep arrived; the party boarded; they proceeded toward the town.
At the railroad crossing at the outskirts of the municipality, Mitra and Mansit alighted and proceeded to Dr. Maloles’ house, while Malabanan was instructed to remain.
Malabanan heard bursts of rapid gunfire.
Mitra and Mansit later arrived back to where the jeep was; they boarded and hurriedly returned to San Pablo.
During the trip back, Mitra boasted that he was the one who fired at Dr. Maloles.
They spent the night in San Pablo and separated the following morning.
After three days, Malabanan returned to meet Mansit and Oliva again at San Pablo.
After Oliva conferred with Mansit, Malabanan asked Mansit about the promised money.
Mansit told Malabanan that Oliva had no money at the time but assured him that Mansit would take care of it.
Malabanan visited several times thereafter but could not contact companions; they only saw one another again in May 1955 at the Constabulary Headquarters.

Challenges to credibility of Malabanan and the Court’s treatment
Appellants argued Malabanan’s testimony was biased, inconsistent, improbable, and motivated by the promise of discharge from the information.
The decision acknowledged Malabanan admitted he might be relieved from criminal responsibility if utilized as a state witness.
The decision also...(Subscriber-Only)

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