Case Summary (G.R. No. 176951)
Key Dates
Commission of Offense: December 27, 1993 (evening abduction)
Discovery of Victim’s Body: December 28, 1993 (morning, Barangay Palestina, Pili, Camarines Sur)
Decision Date: December 3, 1998 (invoking the 1987 Constitution)
Applicable Law
Revised Penal Code, Article 267 (Kidnapping and Serious Illegal Detention) and Article 248 (Murder)
Prosecution’s Factual Narrative
On December 27, 1993, between 6:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., the victim obtained permission to buy viand outside Naga City Jail. Upon emerging from a PNP store adjacent to the jail, he was accosted by Santiano and Sandigan, forcibly brought to the nearby NARCOM office, and mauled by Santiano—who wrapped a handkerchief around his fists—while Pillueta acted as lookout. Chanco arrived in his trimobile, into which the victim was placed alongside Santiano and Pillueta. The three men drove toward Barangay Palestina, Pili. The following morning, the victim’s body, bearing multiple gunshot wounds to the chest and other fatal injuries, was discovered in a canal.
Defense Version
The accused-appellants maintained that on the evening in question they merely gathered socially: Sandigan, Santiano, and Chanco met for a snack, proceeded to the NARCOM office where Pillueta was present, then dispersed separately. Santiano claimed he spent the remainder of the evening attending to his pregnant wife in Milaor, while Pillueta and colleagues went to a music lounge. They denied ever seeing or abducting the victim.
Autopsy Findings
Dr. Thomas S. Gonzales performed the post-mortem and identified:
- Multiple contusions and lacerations on the head and ear
- A puncture wound in the neck
- A fatal gunshot wound entering the right second intercostal space, traversing the heart and left lung, lodging in the left subscapular area
- Cause of death: internal hemorrhage secondary to the gunshot wound
Trial Court Ruling
The Regional Trial Court found all four accused guilty of kidnapping under Article 267, sentencing each to reclusion perpetua and ordering civil indemnity of ₱50,000 to the heirs. The court concluded that the evidence established unlawful deprivation of liberty with serious physical injury culminating in death; it did not reach the murder component due to certain evidentiary gaps.
Issues on Appeal
- Whether the indictment improperly charged “kidnapping with murder” and thus rendered the kidnapping conviction untenable if the murder element failed.
- Whether the information was legally sufficient to apprize the accused of the kidnapping charge.
- Whether proof of kidnapping alone justified conviction absent proof of murder.
Adequacy of the Information
The Supreme Court held that the amended information plainly charged a complex crime—kidnapping under Article 267 and murder under Article 248—and satisfied the requirement to state statutory designations and essential factual allegations. No objection to its sufficiency was raised at trial; hence
...continue readingCase Syllabus (G.R. No. 176951)
Parties and Procedural Posture
- Plaintiff-Appellee: The People of the Philippines, represented by the Regional Trial Court (RTC) of Pili, Branch 32, Camarines Sur, and the Solicitor General on appeal.
- Accused-Appellants: Alipio Santiano, Jose Sandigan, Armenia Pillueta, and Jose Vicente (Jovy) Chanco, charged by amended information with kidnapping with murder under Articles 267 and 248 of the Revised Penal Code.
- Trial Court: RTC of Pili, Branch 32 – found all four guilty beyond reasonable doubt and imposed reclusion perpetua and indemnity to the heirs.
- Supreme Court: First Division, G.R. No. 123979, December 3, 1998 – appeal from the RTC decision.
Factual Background
- December 27, 1993, around 6:00–7:00 PM, at Naga City Jail and vicinity:
- Victim: Ramon John Dy Kow, Jr., a detainee at Naga City Jail.
- He obtained permission to buy viand outside; wore a fatigue jacket and short pants.
- As he left the PNP store six to seven meters from the NARCOM office, appellants Sandigan and Santiano accosted and held him.
- The victim was dragged into the NARCOM office, mauled by Santiano (using a handkerchief–wrapped fists for about 15 minutes), with Pillueta acting as lookout and Chanco entering and then driving a parked trimobile.
Prosecution Evidence
- Witness William RaAola:
- Observed the drag-in, assault by Santiano and confinement in NARCOM office.
- Identified the victim’s fatigue jacket later found on the dead body in Palestina, Pili the next morning.
- Witness Don Gumba:
- Saw the victim aboard Chanco’s trimobile with Santiano and Pillueta around 8:00 PM en route to Palestina, Pili.
- Discovery of cadaver in Palestina, Pili on December 28, 1993:
- Barangay official reported body; victim identified by brother Robert Dy Kow.
- Autopsy by Dr. Thomas S. Gonzales:
- Multiple contusions, lacerations, puncture wound on the neck, and fatal gunshot wound through heart and lung; cause of death: internal hemorrhage secondary to gunshot.
Defense Evidence and Version
- Pillueta and Sandigan:
- Active or former NARCOM/PNP members; claim purely official or social activities on December 27, 1993.
- Santiano and Chanco:
- Civilian volunteers of NARCOM; recount snack at burger house