G.R. No. 25558 - Quijano vs. Cabale

The accused-appellants Pelagio Mostasesa and Paulino Dumagat were found guilty of the crime of coercion.
The Court of Appeals imposed a sentence that included increased penalty and civil liability expressed as either restitution or indemnity.
The Court of Appeals ordered that the penalty be increased to four months and one day of arresto mayor, and that the appellant should be sentenced either to return the articles in question to the complainant or to indemnify him in the sum of P632, with subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency.

After the case was returned to the Court of First Instance for execution, the court issued an order of execution for P600, the value of two bales of tobacco obtained by the accused from the offended party.
The provincial sheriff levied upon certain real properties of accused Paulino Dumagat to secure the payment, notwithstanding the fact that, in compliance with the judgment, the accused had delivered to the sheriff two bales of tobacco.

The accused filed a motion praying that the order of execution be set aside.
The offended party opposed the motion.
The Court of First Instance sustained the opposition and denied the petition to set aside the order of execution.

The accused-appellants appealed from the order denying the motion to set aside the order of execution.
In their brief, the accused asserted that tobacco is a fungible thing and invoked Article 1953 of the Civil Code, contending that the obligation of one who recei...(Subscriber-Only)

Whether the civil liability of the accused-appellants was governed by the Civil Code, particularly Article 1953, as claimed by the accused.
Whether the civil liability was governed instead by Articles 100-111 of the Revised Penal Code.

Whether reparation for the offense could be made by delivering a similar thing of the same amount, kind, or species and quality, given the alleged fungible nature of tobacco.
Whether the civil liability should require restitution of the very thing taken, and if not possible, whether it should be reparation in the price of the thing taken as fixed by the court under the Revised Penal Code.
Whether the value fixed by the trial court for the tobacco—leading to the P600 execution...(Subscriber-Only)