People vs Anticamara GR No 178771 08 June 2011
Facts:
Conrado Estrella and his wife employed AAA and Sulpacio Abad as maid and driver
respectively. Sometime on the afternoon of 07 May 2002, the group of Fernando
Fernandez (Lando), Alberto Anticamara (Al), Dick Taedo (Dick), Roberto Taedo
(Bet), Marvin Lim (Marvin), and Fred Doe entered the house of AAA’s employer
whilst she was sleeping. Thinking that the intruders left the house already, she
attempted to run but Dick was still there. After a brief commotion, the group
decided to tie AAA and was led outside the house. AAA saw Abad tied and
blindfolded inside a vehicle.
AAA was brought to the fishpond, there she saw Necitas Ordeiza-Taedo (Cita). The
group brought Abad outside the vehicle and was led away. AAA heard the group
discussing to make a decision since Abad apparently has been shot four times.
Later on, Lando and Fred boarded the vehicle taking AAA with them to San Miguel,
Tarlac. She was kept in Lando’s house until 09 May 2002.
On 09 May 2002, Lando told AAA that Fred and Bert has intention to kill her and he
brought her to a hotel. Through threat, Lando sexually molested AAA. Later on
Fred, Bert and Lando transferred AAA to the house of Fred’s niece in Riles, Tarlac.
Fred kept AAA as a wife and repeatedly raped her at night, threatening to give her
back to Lando whom she knew killed Abad.
On 22 May 2002, Fred, together with his family, transferred AAA to Carnaga. AAA
was made to stay as a house helper in the house of Fred’s brother-in-law. On 04
June 2002, AAA escaped the house and sought help from her friend who called
AAA’s brother. Arriving Mandaue City, AAA and her brother reported the incident to
police authorities. The cadaver of Abad was autopsied and cause of death was
gunshot wounds on trunk.
Lando, Al and Cita pleaded not guilty during arraignment while Dick, Bet, Marvin
and Fred Doe remained at-large.
The Regional Trial Court convicted both Lando and Al for the crime of Murder and
Kidnapping/Serious Illegal Detention. Whereas Cita was found not guilty for both
crimes due to insufficiency of evidence. The Court of Appeals affirmed the decision.
Lando appealed the decision of the Court of Appeals contending that the court
gravely erred in giving scant consideration to the evidence presented by the
accused-appellant which is more credible than that of the prosecution.
Issue: erred in finding circumstantial evidence against the accused-appellant
sufficient to Whether or not the Court convict them?
Decision: The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeals.
Circumstantial evidence consists of proof of collateral facts and circumstances from
which the existence of the main fact may be inferred according to reason and
common experience.
Circumstantial evidence is sufficient to sustain conviction if:
(a) There is more than one circumstance;
(b) The facts from which the inferences are derived are proven;
(c) The combination of all circumstances is such as to produce a conviction beyond
reasonable doubt.
A judgment of conviction based on circumstantial evidence can be sustained when
the circumstances proved form an unbroken chain that results in a fair and
reasonable conclusion pointing to the accused, to the exclusion of all others, as the
perpetrator.
In this case, the circumstantial evidence presented by the prosecution, when
analyzed and taken together, lead to the inescapable conclusion that the appellants
are responsible for the death of Sulpacio. In addition to these circumstances, the
trial court further found that AAA heard Fred utter “Usapan natin pare, kung sino
ang masagasaan, sagasaan. (Our agreement is that whoever comes our way should
be eliminated).”
Moreover, NBI Agent Gerald V. Geralde testified that on June 23, 2002, appellant Al
admitted his participation as lookout and naming his companions Dick, Lando, Fred,
Marvin and Bet as the ones who took AAA and Sulpacio from the house of the
Estrellas and brought them to the fishpond. Al also pointed and led the authorities
to a shallow grave in Sitio Rosalia, Barangay San Bartolome, Rosales, Pangasinan,
where the remains of Sulpacio were buried. The autopsy conducted on the body,
prepared by the Medico Legal Officer Dr. Bandonil, shows that several holes were
found on various parts of the body of the victim and Dr. Bandonil concluded that
the cause of the victim’s death was the gunshot wounds. The report also indicates
that a piece of cloth was found wrapped around the eye sockets and tied at the
back of the skull, and another cloth was also found tied at the remnants of the left
wrist.
In the case at bar, although no one directly saw the actual killing of Sulpacio, the
prosecution was able to paint a clear picture that the appellants took Sulpacio away
from the house of the Estrellas, tied and blindfolded him, and brought him to
another place where he was repeatedly shot and buried.
