G.R. No. 945 - People vs. Abelinde

The case involves the United States as complainant and appellee against Melchor Abelinde and several other defendants.
The defendants were convicted by the lower court and sentenced to death for the murder of multiple members of the Echevarria family, including Antonio, Juan, Julian, Nicomedes, Lucio, Severo, and Isabel, among others.

The incident occurred on the night of the 14th or 15th of August 1900 at the Echevarria family residence in the hamlet of Naro, then part of the town of Uson (now in the township of Palanas, Province of Masbate).
A gang of approximately forty men assaulted the house, firing two or three shots upon arrival, and ordering the occupants to come down one at a time.
Once the occupants complied, the assailants seized their arms (guns and revolvers), bound them elbow to elbow, and then proceeded to kill them by shooting or stabbing with bolos.
The bodies were later placed in sacks and thrown into the sea.

Testimony of Patricia Arma and Diego Atigera corroborated the occurrence of the assault and the subsequent murder.

Diego Atigera, who had been kidnapped the night before, was compelled to accompany the malefactors due to relation ties with the Echevarria family.
Patricia Arma testified that the victims surrendered their arms peacefully, not knowing their fate, contrary to self-defense claims.

Other witnesses, including Tomas Atigera, Policarpia Arisola, and Victoria Garcia, provided supporting testimony by confirming the shots fired, the presence of the assailants, and the subsequent sightings of the bodies on the beach or in the vicinity.
Specific identification of defendants:

Melchor Abelinde was observed by multiple witnesses (Patricia Arma, Diego Atigera, Tomas Atigera, Camilo Afable, and Victoria Garcia) at the scene, including during post-crime activities such as standing guard armed with a saber and a gun.
Leon Arco, though not seen on the night of the assault at the Echevarria house, was later identified by circumstantial evidence; witnesses Martin Atin and Bernardo Legaspi testified that he was part of the band departing from Naro, carrying a bolo stained with blood.

The assailants proceeded to seize goods (money, rice, and other articles) found in the house, indicating a criminal intent beyond murder.
The defendants, upon trial, confessed that they were present at the scene, claiming that they had been forcibly taken by the main malefactors and left tied to trees during the commission of the crime.
The record overwhelmingly demonstrated that the group acted in a concerted manner, with a prearranged plan and deliberation starting at least a day before, highlighted by the kidnapping of Diego Atigera.
The manner of killing—victims tied up and shot or stabbed—clearly supported the element of treachery or alevosia, as defined by the Penal Code.

Whether the mere presence of the defendants among the assailants, despite claims of forced participation, is sufficient to establish their criminal liability as co-participants in the murder.
Whether the evidence of circumstantial presence and participation in the actions of the gang fulfills the standard for direct complicity under article 13 of the Penal Code.

Whether the manner of killing, with the victims tied elbow to elbow and prevented from defending themselves, qualifies as murder with alevosia under article 10, paragraph 2 of the Penal Code.
Evaluation of whether aggravating circumstances—such as the nighttime execution, use of a gang, premeditated planning, and fraud by deception—should further enhance the criminal liability of the defendants.

The appropriateness of applying the amnesty of July 4 last, based on the claim that the deceased, being of a Spanish family and former caciques, were killed due to political feuds or insurrectionary motives.
Whether sufficient evidence exists to support that the killing was politically motivated rather than committed in the pursuit of robbery.