Title
People vs. Taraya
Case
G.R. No. 135551
Decision Date
Oct 27, 2000
Three relatives accused of murder; AMPIE convicted of homicide, claiming self-defense, while ARLY and JONAR acquitted due to lack of evidence of conspiracy.
conspiracy
participation
treachery

Case Summary (G.R. No. 135551)

Factual Background

The prosecution evidence showed that Salvador Reyes died on the night of September 24, 1995. A co-worker, Mariano Adillo, testified that he had known Salvador for about two months and that at around 10:00 p.m. they were together at a beer house in Famy, Laguna. Mariano stated that Salvador drank beer outside while conversing with a girl and that, later, Salvador was approached and surrounded by three men. Mariano said he recognized the accused-appellants when, upon being asked in court to identify the three persons who approached Salvador, he pointed to AMPIE, JONAR, and ARLY. Mariano further testified that he bellowed at the men, who left immediately, and that half an hour later Salvador was gone. When Mariano later learned of Salvador’s death the following day, he reported the incident.

A neighbor witness, David Angeles, Jr., testified that the accused-appellants were his neighbors. He described that in the late evening of September 24, 1995, while he was awake because of a backache, he saw AMPIE brandishing a bolo and that behind AMPIE were ARLY and JONAR. David stated that AMPIE approached a man who appeared to be urinating, held up the man’s head, and slashed his neck once. He added that ARLY and JONAR stood nearby and were ready to assist. David testified that the victim freed himself and ran toward David until the victim collapsed nearby, and that immediately afterward AMPIE, ARLY, and JONAR each went to their respective homes.

David explained that he saw the incident in an illuminated place and was confident in his identification. He claimed reluctance to report at once because of fear and did so only after conscience bothered him, giving a sworn statement to the police.

Another prosecution witness, Gregorio Reyes, the victim’s father, testified that Salvador had an altercation with ARLY and that he learned this from Salvador. He claimed funeral expenses of P18,000, but he was unable to present receipts because some expenses were paid by friends.

Forensic evidence came from Dr. Gloria Jamolin, who conducted the autopsy and found abrasions in the right temporal area and below the eyes and a hacking wound at the neck that could have been caused by a sharp instrument such as a bolo. She opined that the assailant was in front of the victim because of the wound’s location and nature. She stated that the cause of death was cardio-respiratory arrest secondary to shock and hemorrhage due to the hack wound penetrating the esophagus.

Defense Version and Trial Evidence

The defense offered differing versions that centered on alibi for ARLY and JONAR, and self-defense for AMPIE. ARLY claimed that on September 24, 1995 he was at his place of work, a coprasan, and stayed there until 8:00 p.m., then went home, slept, and remained home until he was awakened around 1:00 a.m. by his wife, who informed him of people milling outside. He stated that he saw the dead body of Salvador and then returned to sleep, and that he did not leave during his sleeping and waking hours. ARLY also suggested that David Angeles, Jr. implicated him due to a prior conflict involving JONAR and David’s brother, and he asserted that he did not go to the beer house on September 24, 1995.

JONAR similarly claimed alibi. He stated that he slept from around 8:00 p.m. until 5:00 a.m. the following day, was arrested later, and that he was not at the beer house as alleged by Mariano. He denied involvement and attributed David’s accusation to a misunderstanding between JONAR and David’s brother’s circle originating from a fight on September 13, 1995.

AMPIE claimed that he first had an altercation at a beer house involving a former boyfriend of a waitress, and that after the threatened confrontation he went home, but later woke up around midnight, went out to urinate, and armed himself with a bolo because he was suspicious and frightened. He stated that he saw Salvador Reyes across the street and that Salvador attempted to hit him with an iron pipe; AMPIE claimed he dodged the first blow but was hit by the second. AMPIE then said he retaliated by swinging his bolo, dropped it, and returned to the house. He did not report the incident immediately. He claimed he went to work elsewhere and only later learned that the police were looking for him, prompting him to identify himself at the police station on October 9, 1995, accompanied by his sister. He surrendered while his uncle and cousin were already detained. AMPIE insisted that he was not involved in ARLY and JONAR’s participation and maintained self-defense. On cross-examination, AMPIE acknowledged that he swung his bolo to parry, and he claimed he did not know he had actually hit Salvador in a manner causing death.

The prosecution also presented SPO2 Emmanuel Martinez who testified that he arrived at the scene, that the body was found some ten yards from David’s house, and that AMPIE was implicated by an eyewitness. Martinez stated that ARLY and JONAR were immediately incarcerated, while AMPIE surrendered on October 9, 1997 in the narrative, with a police blotter entry of the date and time. Martinez testified that AMPIE admitted killing Salvador but claimed self-defense, and that Martinez discontinued the investigation and advised AMPIE to consult counsel. The trial court later treated AMPIE’s movement away from the locality as flight.

Trial Court Proceedings

The trial court limited its determination to three issues: (1) whether AMPIE acted in self-defense, (2) whether ARLY and JONAR participated in the killing, and (3) whether AMPIE voluntarily surrendered to the police.

In its decision dated February 6, 1998, the trial court convicted AMPIE, ARLY, and JONAR of murder, with treachery as a qualifying circumstance. The court credited the prosecution witnesses, particularly the eyewitness identification, and rejected ARLY and JONAR’s alibi as weak and inconsistent with the claimed proximity of their residences to where the body was found. The court ruled that AMPIE’s self-defense was not established. It reasoned that AMPIE failed to show physical injury that he could have sustained if Salvador had struck him as alleged, and it observed that the alleged iron pipe was not presented and not found at the scene. It further ruled that AMPIE failed to establish the reasonable necessity of the means employed.

On treachery, the trial court held that the attack was sudden and that the accused deliberately employed means to ensure success without risk. It also ruled that abuse of superior strength was absorbed in treachery. The trial court found no factual basis for evident premeditation. It denied voluntary surrender as a mitigating circumstance for AMPIE, explaining that when AMPIE went to the police on October 9, 1995, there already existed a pending warrant of arrest issued on October 4, 1995, making the arrest imminent and thus foreclosing the mitigating effect. The court found AMPIE’s flight after the incident as an indication of guilt.

The Parties’ Contentions on Appeal

On appeal, accused-appellants argued that the trial court erred in finding conspiracy and in holding ARLY and JONAR liable as co-conspirators without proof of any overt act. They asserted that the prosecution evidence only showed their presence, and they maintained that there was no evidence that they actually helped AMPIE in killing Salvador.

As to the offense, they contended that the trial court should have convicted AMPIE only of homicide, not murder, because treachery was not proven by the level of clear and convincing evidence. They emphasized that AMPIE hacked the victim once and allegedly acted as the lone assailant who immediately fled.

The Office of the Solicitor General opposed the appeal. It argued that conspiracy could be inferred from the testimony of David Angeles, Jr., who said that ARLY and JONAR were behind AMPIE and appeared ready to render assistance, actions described as “nakaalalay” and “anyong tutulong.” The Solicitor General also argued that in conspiracy, it was not necessary that each conspirator actually kill the victim. It further maintained that the trial court correctly appreciated treachery based on the means used to ensure death without risk and because Salvador was alone, unarmed, and unsuspecting, deprived of the opportunity to defend.

In the reply, accused-appellants insisted that mere presence did not establish conspiracy, that David’s perception could be mistaken, and that there could be no treachery if AMPIE were the lone perpetrator.

Appellate Ruling of the Court

The Court held that the evidence did not meet the standard of proof beyond reasonable doubt to establish conspiracy among the accused-appellants so as to hold ARLY and JONAR equally liable for the death of Salvador. The Court therefore acquitted ARLY and JONAR on the ground of reasonable doubt. The Court also modified the conviction of AMPIE by reducing the offense from murder to homicide, because treachery could not be appreciated on the prosecution’s evidence.

Legal Basis and Reasoning

The Court began by reiterating that conspiracy exists when two or more persons come to an agreement to commit a crime and decide to execute it. It held that an agreement need not be shown by direct evidence. Conspiracy may be deduced from the manner of commission and inferred from concerted action and community of interest. However, where the prosecution’s evidence fails to establish conspiracy with moral certainty, the accused must not be held liable as co-principals.

Applying these principles, the Court found that the trial court’s reliance on Mariano Adillo and David Angeles, Jr. did not sufficiently prove conspiracy. It observed that there was no indication of prior hostility between Salvador and AMPIE, ARLY, or JONAR before the beer house incident. The Court noted the absence of evidence that the girl Salvador conversed with was AMPIE’s girlfriend or that AMPIE acted from jealousy.

The Court also critically assessed David’s testimony. It fou

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