EN BANC

[G.R. No. 117472. June 25, 1996.]

PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES , plaintiff-appellee, vs . LEO ECHEGARAY

y PILO , accused-appellant.

The Solicitor General for plaintiff-appellee.

Julian R. Vitug for accused-appellant.

SYLLABUS

1. REMEDIAL LAW; EVIDENCE; GUIDING PRINCIPLES IN RAPE CASES. —

Considering that a rape charge, in the light of the reimposition of the death penalty,
requires a thorough and judicious examination of the circumstances relating thereto, this
Court remains guided by the following principles in evaluating evidence in cases of this
nature: (a) An accusation for rape can be made with facility; it is di cult to prove but more
di cult for the accused though innocent to disprove; (b) In view of the intrinsic nature of
the crime of rape where only two persons are involved, the testimony of the complainant
must be scrutinized with extreme caution; and (c) The evidence for the prosecution must
stand and fall on its own merits, and cannot be allowed to draw strength from the
weakness of the evidence for the defense.
2. ID.; ID.; TESTIMONY OF RAPE VICTIM; CREDIBLE, IN THE ABSENCE OF ILL-
MOTIVE. — It is well-entrenched jurisprudential rule that the testimony of a rape victim is
credible where she has no motive to testify against the accused.
3. CRIMINAL LAW; RAPE; BROKEN HYMEN, NOT AN ELEMENT THEREOF. — In rape
cases, a broken hymen is not an essential element thereof. A mere knocking at the doors
of the pudenda, so to speak, by the accused's penis su ces to constitute the crime of
rape as full entry into the victim's vagina is not required to sustain a conviction.
4. ID.; ID.; DEATH PENALTY APPLIES WHERE VICTIM IS UNDER 18 YEARS AND
OFFENDER IS THE COMMON-LAW SPOUSE OF THE VICTIM'S MOTHER. — Considering
that the accused-appellant is a con rmed lover of Rodessa's mother, he falls squarely
within the aforequoted portion of the Death Penalty Law under the term "common-law
spouse of the parent of the victim." The fact that the ten-year old Rodessa referred to the
accused-appellant as "Papa" is reason enough to conclude that accused-appellant is either
the father or stepfather of Rodessa. Thus, the act of sexual assault perpetrated by the
accused on his young victim has become all the more repulsive and perverse. The victim's
tender age and the accused-appellant's moral ascendancy and in uence over her are
factors which forced Rodessa to succumb to the accused's sel sh and bestial craving.
The law has made it inevitable under the circumstances of this case that the accused-
appellant face the supreme penalty of death.

DECISION

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 PER CURIAM : p

Amidst the endless debates on whether or not the reimposition of the death
penalty is indeed a deterrent as far as the commission of heinous crimes is concerned
and while the attendant details pertaining to the execution of a death sentence remain
as yet another burning issue, we are tasked with providing a clear-cut resolution of
whether or not the herein accused-appellant deserves to forfeit his place in human
society for the in iction of the primitive and bestial act of incestuous lust on his own
blood.
Before us for automatic review is the judgment of conviction, dated September 7,
1994, for the crime of Rape, rendered after marathon hearing by the Regional Trial Court
of Quezon City, Branch 104, the dispositive portion of which reads:
"WHEREFORE, judgment is hereby rendered nding accused LEO
ECHEGARAY Y PILO guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of RAPE as
charged in the complaint, aggravated by the fact that the same was committed by
the accused who is the father/stepfather of the complainant, he is hereby
sentenced to suffer the penalty of DEATH, as provided for under R.A. No. 7659; to
pay the complainant Rodessa Echegaray the sum of P50,000.00 as damages,
plus all the accessory penalties provided by law, without subsidiary imprisonment
in case of insolvency, and to pay the costs." 1
We note, however, that the charge had been formulated in this manner:
"COMPLAINT
The undersigned accuses LEO ECHEGARAY Y PILO of the crime of RAPE,
committed as follows:
That on or about the month of April 1994, in Quezon City, Philippines, the
above-named accused, by means of force and intimidation, did then and there
wilfully, unlawfully and feloniously have carnal knowledge of the undersigned
complainant, his daughter, a minor, 10 years of age, all against her will and
without her consent, to her damage and prejudice.
CONTRARY TO LA W." 2
Upon being arraigned on August 1, 1994, the accused-appellant, assisted by his
counsel de oficio, entered the plea of "not guilty."
These are the pertinent facts of the case as summarized by the Solicitor-General
in his brief:
"This is a case of rape by the father of his ten-year old daughter.
Complainant RODESSA ECHEGARAY is a ten-year old girl and a fth-
grader, born on September 11, 1983. Rodessa is the eldest of ve siblings. She
has three brothers aged 6, 5 and 2, respectively, and a 3-month old baby sister.
Her parents are Rosalie and Leo Echegaray, the latter being the accused-appellant
himself. The victim lives with her family in a small house located at No. 199
Fernandez St., Barangay San Antonio, San Francisco Del Monte, Quezon City (pp.
5-9, Aug. 9, 1994, TSN).
Sometime in the afternoon of April 1994, while Rodessa was looking after
her three brothers in their house as her mother attended a gambling session in
another place, she heard her father, the accused-appellant in this case, order her
brothers to go out of the house (pp. 10-11, ibid.). As soon as her brothers left,
accused-appellant Leo Echegaray approached Rodessa and suddenly dragged
her inside the room (p. 12, ibid.). Before she could question the appellant, the
latter immediately removed her panty and made her lie on the oor (p. 13, ibid.).
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 Thereafter, appellant likewise removed his underwear and immediately placed
himself on top of Rodessa. Subsequently, appellant forcefully inserted his penis
into Rodessa's organ causing her to suffer intense pain (pp. 14-15, ibid.). While
appellant was pumping on her, he even uttered: 'Masarap ba, masarap ba?' and to
which Rodessa answered: 'Tama na Papa, masakit' (p. 16, ibid.). Rodessa's plea
proved futile as appellant continued with his act. After satisfying his bestial
instinct, appellant threatened to kill her mother if she would divulge what had
happened. Scared that her mother would be killed by appellant, Rodessa kept to
herself the ordeal she suffered. She was very afraid of appellant because the
latter, most of the time, was high on drugs (pp. 17-18, ibid.). The same sexual
assault happened up to the fifth time and this usually took place when her mother
was out of the house (p. 19, ibid.). However, after the fth time, Rodessa decided
to inform her grandmother, Asuncion Rivera, who in turn told Rosalie, Rodessa's
mother. Rodessa and her mother proceeded to the Barangay Captain where
Rodessa con ded the sexual assaults she suffered. Thereafter, Rodessa was
brought to the precinct where she executed an a davit (p. 21, ibid.). From there,
she was accompanied to the Philippine National Police Crime Laboratory for
medical examination (p. 22, ibid.).
Rodessa testi ed that the said sexual assaults happened only during the
time when her mother was pregnant. Rodessa added that at rst, her mother was
on her side. However, when appellant was detained, her mother kept on telling her:
'Kawawa naman ang Tatay mo, nakakulong' (pp. 39-40, ibid.).
When Rodessa was examined by the medico-legal o cer in the person of
Dra. Ma. Cristina B. Preyna, 3 the complainant was described as physically on
a non-virgin state, as evidenced by the presence of laceration of the hymen
of said complainant (TSN, Aug. 22, 1995, pp. 8-9)." 4
On the other hand, the accused-appellant's brief presents a different story:
". . . the defense presented its rst witness, Rosalie Echegaray. She
asserted that the RAPE charge against the accused was only the gment of her
mother's dirty mind. That her daughter's complaint was forced upon her by her
grandma and the answers in the sworn statement of Rodessa were coached. That
the accusation of RAPE was motivated by Rodessa's grandmother's greed over
the lot situated at the Madrigal Estate-NHA Project, Barangay San Antonio, San
Francisco del Monte, Quezon City, which her grandmother's paramour, Conrado
Alfonso gave to the accused in order to persuade the latter to admit that Rodessa
executed an a davit of desistance after it turned out that her complaint of
attempted homicide was substituted with the crime of RAPE at the instance of her
mother. That when her mother came to know about the a davit of desistance,
she placed her granddaughter under the custody of the Barangay Captain. That
her mother was never a real mother to her.
She stated that her complaint against accused was for attempted
homicide as her husband poured alcohol on her body and attempted to burn her.
She identi ed the certi cation issued by the NHA and Tag No. 87-0393 (Exh. 2).
That the Certi cation based on the Masterlist (Exh. 3) indicates that the property
is co-owned by accused and Conrado Alfonso. That Rodessa is her daughter sired
by Conrado Alfonso, the latter being the paramour of her mother. That Conrado
Alfonso waived his right and participation over the lot in favor of the accused in
consideration of the latter's accepting the fact that he is the father of Rodessa to
simulate the love triangle and to conceal the nauseating sex orgies from Conrado
Alfonso's real Wife.
Accused testi ed in his behalf and stated that the grandmother of the
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 complainant has a very strong motive in implicating him to the crime of RAPE
since she was interested to become the sole owner of a property awarded to her
live-in partner by the Madrigal Estate-NHA Project. That he could not have
committed the imputed crime because he considers Rodessa as his own
daughter. That he is a painter-contractor and on the date of the alleged
commission of the crime, he was painting the house of one Divina Ang of
Barangay Vitalis, Parañaque, Metro Manila (Exh 4). The travel time between his
work place to his residence is three (3) hours considering the condition of tra c.
That the painting contract is evidenced by a document denominated 'Contract of
Services' duly accomplished (see submarkings of Exh. 4). He asserted that he has
a big sexual organ which when used to a girl 11 years old like Rodessa, the said
female organ will be 'mawawarak'. That it is abnormal to report the imputed
commission of the crime to the grandmother of the victim.
Accused further stated that her (sic) mother-in-law trumped-up a charge of
drug pushing earlier and he pleaded guilty to a lesser offense of using drugs. The
decretal portion of the judgment of conviction ordering the accused to be
con ned at the Bicutan Rehabilitation Center irked the grandmother of Rodessa
because it was her wish that accused should be meted the death penalty.
Accused remain steadfast in his testimony perorating the strong motive of
Rodessa's grandmother in implicating him in this heinous crime because of her
greed to become the sole owner of that piece of property at the National Housing
Authority-Madrigal Project, situated at San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City,
notwithstanding rigid cross-examination. He asserted that the imputed offense is
far from his mind considering that he treated Rodessa as his own daughter. He
categorically testi ed that he was in his painting job site on the date and time of
the alleged commission of the crime.
Mrs. Punzalan was presented as third defense witness. She said that she
is the laundry woman and part time baby sitter of the family of accused. That at
one time, she saw Rodessa reading sex books and the Bulgar newspaper. That
while hanging washed clothes on the vacant lot, she saw Rodessa masturbating
by tinkering her private parts. The masturbation took sometime.
This sexual ing of Rodessa were corroborated by Silvestra Echegaray, the
fourth and last witness for the defense. She stated that she tried hard to correct
the irting tendency of Rodessa and that she scolded her when she saw Rodessa
viewing an X-rated tape. Rodessa according to her was fond of going with friends
of ill-repute. That (sic) she corroborated the testimony of Mrs Punzalan by stating
that she herself saw Rodessa masturbating inside the room of her house." 5
In nding the accused-appellant guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of
rape, the lower court dismissed the defense of alibi and lent credence to the
straightforward testimony of the ten-year old victim to whom no ill motive to testify
falsely against accused-appellant can be attributed. The lower court likewise regarded
as inconsequential the defense of the accused-appellant that the extraordinary size of
his penis could not have insinuated itself into the victim's vagina and that the accused is
not the real father of the said victim.
The accused-appellant now reiterates his position in his attempt to seek a
reversal of the lower court's verdict through the following assignment of errors:
"1. THE LOWER COURT FAILED TO APPRECIATE THE SINISTER MOTIVE
OF PRIVATE COMPLAINANT'S GRANDMOTHER THAT PRECIPITATED THE
FILING OF THE CHARGE OF RAPE, HENCE IT ERRED IN HOLDING ACCUSED
GUILTY AS CHARGED.

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 2. THE COURT BELOW OVERLOOKED THE FACT THAT THE HEALED
LACERATIONS AT 3 AND 7 O'CLOCK COULD NOT HAVE BEEN DUE TO THE
PUMPING OF THE PENIS OF ACCUSED TO THE VAGINA OF PRIVATE
COMPLAINANT, HENCE IT ERRED IN HOLDING THAT ACCUSED COMMITTED
THE CRIME CHARGED, NOTWITHSTANDING VEHEMENT DENIAL.
3. THE COURT A QUO WHIMSICALLY IGNORED THE DEFENSE OF ALIBI
THAT ACCUSED WAS IN PARAÑAQUE ON THE DATE AND TIME OF THE
IMPUTED CRIME HENCE, IT ERRED IN HOLDING THAT ALIBI IS NOT
SUSTAINABLE IN THE CASE AT BAR." 6
Considering that a rape charge, in the light of the reimposition of the death
penalty, requires a thorough and judicious examination of the circumstances relating
thereto, this Court remains guided by the following principles in evaluating evidence in
cases of this nature: (a) An accusation for rape can be made with facility; it is di cult
to prove but more di cult for the accused though innocent to disprove; (b) In view of
the intrinsic nature of the crime of rape where only two persons are involved, the
testimony of the complainant must be scrutinized with extreme caution; and (c) The
evidence for the prosecution must stand and fall on its own merits, and cannot be
allowed to draw strength from the weakness of the evidence for the defense." 7
Anent the rst assigned error, no amount of persuasion can convince this Court
to tilt the scales of justice in favor of the accused-appellant notwithstanding that he
cries foul insisting that the rape charge was merely concocted and strongly motivated
by greed over a certain lot situated at the NHA-Madrigal Estate Housing Project,
Barangay San Antonio, San Francisco del Monte, Quezon City. The accused-appellant
theorizes that prosecution witness Asuncion Rivera, the maternal grandmother of the
victim Rodessa, concocted the charge of rape so that, in the event that the accused-
appellant shall be meted out a death sentence, title to the lot will be consolidated in her
favor. Indeed, the lot in question is co-owned by the accused-appellant and Conrado
Alfonso, the live-in partner of Asuncion Rivera, according to the records of the National
Housing Authority (Exh. "3"). The accused-appellant would want us to believe that the
rape charge was fabricated by Asuncion Rivera in order to eliminate the accused-
appellant from being a co-owner. So, the live-in partners would have the property for
their own. 8
We believe, as did the Solicitor-General, that no grandmother would be so callous
as to instigate her 10-year old granddaughter to le a rape case against her own father
simply on account of her alleged interest over the disputed lot. 9
It is a well-entrenched jurisprudential rule that the testimony of a rape victim is
credible where she has no motive to testify against the accused. 1 0
We nd no aws material enough to discredit the testimony of the ten-year old
Rodessa which the trial court found convincing enough and unrebutted by the defense.
The trial court not surprisingly noted that Rodessa's narration in detail of her father's
monstrous acts had made her cry. 1 1 Once again, we rule that:
". . . The testimony of the victim who was only 12 years old at the time of
the rape as to the circumstances of the rape must be given weight, for testimony
of young and immature rape victims are credible (People v. Guibao , 217 SCRA 64
[1993]). No woman especially one of tender age, practically only a girl, would
concoct a story of de oration, allow an examination of her private parts and
thereafter expose herself to a public trial, if she were not motivated solely by the
desire to have the culprit apprehended and punished (People v. Guibao, supra )."
12

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 The accused-appellant points out certain inconsistencies in the testimonies of
the prosecution witnesses in his attempt to bolster his claim that the rape accusation
against him is malicious and baseless. Firstly, Rodessa's testimony that the accused-
appellant was already naked when he dragged her inside the room is inconsistent with
her subsequent testimony that the said accused-appellant was still wearing short pants
when she was dragged inside the room. Secondly, Rodessa's sworn statement before
the police investigator which indicated that, while the accused was executing pumping
acts, he uttered the words "Masarap ba?", differ from her testimony in court wherein
she related that, when the accused took out his penis from her vagina, the accused said
"Masarap, tapos na." Thirdly, the victim's grandmother, Asuncion Rivera, recounted in
her sworn statement that it was the accused who went to see her to apprise her of the
rape committed on her granddaughter. However, in her testimony in court, Asuncion
Rivera claimed that she was the one who invited the accused-appellant to see her in her
house so as to tell her a secret. 1 3 These alleged discrepancies merely pertain to minor
details which in no way pose serious doubt as to the credibility of the prosecution
witnesses. Whether or not the accused was naked when he dragged Rodessa inside the
room where he sexually assaulted her bears no signi cant effect on Rodessa's
testimony that she was actually raped by the accused-appellant. Moreover, a conflicting
account of whatever words were uttered by the accused-appellant after he forcefully
inserted his penis into Rodessa's private organ against her will cannot impair the
prosecution's evidence as a whole. A determination of which version earmarks the truth
as to how the victim's grandmother learned about the rape is inconsequential to the
judgment of conviction.
As we have pronounced in the case of People v. Jaymalin: 1 4
"This Court has stated time and again that minor inconsistencies in the
narration of a witness do not detract from its essential credibility as long as it is
on the whole coherent and intrinsically believable. Inaccuracies may in fact
suggest that the witness is telling the truth and has not been rehearsed as it is not
to be expected that he will be able to remember every single detail of an incident
with perfect or total recall."
After due deliberation, this Court nds that the trial judge's assessment of the
credibility of the prosecution witnesses deserves our utmost respect in the absence of
arbitrariness.
With respect to the second assigned error, the records of the instant case are
bereft of clear and concrete proof of the accused-appellant's claim as to the size of his
penis and that if that be the fact, it could not have merely caused shallow healed
lacerations at 3:00 and 7:00 o'clock. 1 5 In his testimony, the accused-appellant stated
that he could not have raped Rodessa because of the size of his penis which could have
ruptured her vagina had he actually done so. 1 6 This Court gives no probative value on
the accused-appellant's self-serving statement in the light of our ruling in the case of
People v. Melivo, supra, 1 7 that:
"The vaginal wall and the hymenal membrane are elastic organs capable
of varying degrees of distensibility. The degree of distensibility of the female
reproductive organ is normally limited only by the character and size of the pelvic
inlet, other factors being minor. The female reproductive canal being capable of
allowing passage of a regular fetus, there ought to be no di culty allowing the
entry of objects of much lesser size, including the male reproductive organ, which
even in its largest dimensions, would still be considerably smaller than the full-
term fetus.
xxx xxx xxx
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 In the case at bench, the presence of healed lacerations in various parts of
the vaginal wall, though not as extensive as appellant might have expected them
to be, indicate traumatic injury to the area within the period when the incidents
were supposed to have occurred." (At pp. 13-14, Emphasis supplied)
In rape cases, a broken hymen is not an essential element thereof. 1 8 A mere
knocking at the doors of the pudenda, so to speak, by the accused's penis su ces to
constitute the crime of rape as full entry into the victim's vagina is not required to
sustain a conviction. 1 9 In the case, Dr. Freyra, the medico-legal examiner, categorically
testi ed that the healed lacerations of Rodessa on her vagina were consistent with the
date of the commission of the rape as narrated by the victim to have taken place in
April, 1994. 2 0
Lastly, the third assigned error deserves scant consideration. The accused-
appellant erroneously argues that the Contract of Services (Exhibit 4) offered as
evidence in support of the accused-appellant's defense of alibi need not be
corroborated because there is no law expressly requiring so. 2 1 In view of our nding
that the prosecution witnesses have no motive to falsely testify against the accused-
appellant, the defense of alibi, in this case, uncorroborated by other witnesses, should
be completely disregarded. 2 2 More importantly, the defense of alibi which is inherently
weak becomes even weaker in the face of positive identi cation of the accused-
appellant as perpetrator of the crime of rape by his victim, Rodessa. 2 3
The Contract of Services whereby the accused-appellant obligated himself to do
some painting job at the house of one Divina Ang in Parañaque, Metro Manila, within 25
days from April 4, 1994, is not proof of the whereabouts of the accused-appellant at
the time of the commission of the offense.
The accused-appellant in this case is charged with Statutory Rape on the basis of
the complaint, dated July 14, 1994. The gravamen of the said offense, as stated in
paragraph 3, Article 335 of the Revised Penal Code, is the carnal knowledge of a
woman below twelve years old. 2 4 Rodessa positively identi ed his father accused-
appellant, succeeded in consummating his grievous and odious sexual assault on her is
free from any substantial self contradiction. It is highly inconceivable that it is
rehearsed and fabricated upon instructions from Rodessa's maternal grandmother
Asuncion Rivera as asserted by the accused-appellant. The words of Chief Justice
Enrique M. Fernando, speaking for the Court, more than two decades ago, are relevant
and worth reiterating, thus:
". . . it is manifest in the decisions of this Court that where the offended
parties are young and immature girls like the victim in this case, (Cited cases
omitted) there is marked receptivity on its part to lend credence to their version of
what transpired. It is not to be wondered at. The state, as parens patria, is under
the obligation to minimize the risk of harm to those, who, because of their
minority, are as yet unable to take care of themselves fully. Those of tender years
deserve its utmost protection. Moreover, the injury in cases of rape is not in icted
on the unfortunate victim alone. The consternation it causes her family must also
be taken into account. It may re ect a failure to abide by the announced concern
in the fundamental law for such institution. There is all the more reason then for
the rigorous application of the penal law with its severe penalty for this offense,
whenever warranted. It has been aptly remarked that with the advance in
civilization, the disruption in public peace and order it represents de es
explanation, much more so in view of what currently appears to be a tendency for
sexual permissiveness. Where the prospects of relationship based on consent are
hardly minimal, self-restraint should even be more marked." 2 5
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 Under Section 11 of Republic Act No. 7659 often referred to as the Death Penalty
Law, Art. 335 of the Revised Penal Code was amended, to wit:
"The death penalty shall also be imposed if the crime of rape is committed
with any of the following attendant circumstances:
1. When the victim is under eighteen (18) years of age and the offender is a
parent, ascendant, step-parent, guardian, relative by consanguinity or a nity
within the third civil degree, or the common-law spouse of the parent of the victim.
xxx xxx xxx
(Emphasis supplied)
Apparently, as a last glimpse of hope, the accused-appellant questions the
penalty imposed by the trial court by declaring that he is neither a father, stepfather or
grandfather of Rodessa although he was a con rmed lover of Rodessa's mother. 2 6 On
direct examination, he admitted that before the charge of rape was led against him, he
had treated Rodessa as his real daughter and had provided for her food, clothing,
shelter and education. 2 7 The Court notes that Rodessa uses the surname of the
accused-appellant, not Rivera (her mother's maiden name) nor Alfonso (her
grandmother's live-in partner). Moreover, Rodessa's mother stated during the cross-
examination that she, the accused-appellant, and her ve children, including Rodessa,
had been residing in one house only. 2 8 At any rate, even if he were not the father,
stepfather or grandfather of Rodessa, this disclaimer cannot save him from the abyss
where perpetrators of heinous crimes ought to be, as mandated by law. Considering
that the accused-appellant is a con rmed lover of Rodessa's mother, 2 9 he falls
squarely within the aforequoted portion of the Death Penalty Law under the term
"common-law spouse of the parent of the victim."
The fact that the ten-year old Rodessa referred to the accused-appellant as
"Papa" is reason enough to conclude that accused-appellant is either the father or
stepfather of Rodessa. Thus, the act of sexual assault perpetrated by the accused on
his young victim has become all the more repulsive and perverse. The victim's tender
age and the accused-appellant's moral ascendancy and in uence over her are factors
which forced Rodessa to succumb to the accused's sel sh and bestial craving. The law
has made it inevitable under the circumstances of this case that the accused-appellant
face the supreme penalty of death.
WHEREFORE, we AFFIRM the decision of the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City,
Branch 104.
SO ORDERED.
Narvasa, C.J., Padilla, Regalado, Davide, Jr., Romero, Bellosillo, Melo, Puno, Vitug,
Kapunan, Mendoza, Francisco, Hermosisima, Jr., Panganiban and Torres, Jr., JJ. concur.

Footnotes
1. Records, p. 53.
2. Records, p. 1.
3. The name of the medico-legal o cer as per Medico-Legal Report No. M-0980-94 (Exhibit
"6") reads Ma. Cristina B. Freyra.
4. Rollo, pp. 87-90.

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 5. Rollo, pp. 45-48.
6. Rollo, p. 49.
7. People v. Apolonio Melivo y Valete , G.R. No. 113029, promulgated on Feb. 8, 1996, citing
People v. Matrimonio , 215 SCRA [1992]; People v. Aldana , 175 SCRA 635 [1989];
People v. Capilitan, 182 SCRA 313 [1990].
8. TSN, August 30, 1994, p. 13.
9. Rollo, p. 93.
10. People v. Matamorosa , 231 SCRA 509, 515 [1994], citing People v. Palicte , 229 SCRA 543
[1994]; and People v. Cabilao, 210 SCRA [1992].
11. RTC Decision, p. 6; Records, p. 50.

12. People v. Espinoza, 247 SCRA 66, 72-73 [1995].

13. Rollo, pp. 53-54.
14. 214 SCRA 685-690-691 [1992], citing People v. Ansing (196 SCRA 374 [1991]).
15. Rollo, p. 58.
16. TSN, August 30, 1994, p. 19.

17. See note No. 7.

18. People v. Salinas , 232 SCRA 274, 278-279 [1994]; People v. Madrilano , 227 SCRA 363,
[1993].
19. People v. Abella , 228 SCRA 662, 666 [1993]; People v. Tesimo , 204 SCRA 535, 555-556
[1991]; People v. Castillo, 197 SCRA 657, 662 [1991].
20. TSN, August 22, 1994, pp. 8-9.
21. Rollo, p. 65.
22. People v. Gapasan, 243 SCRA 53, 62 [1995].
23. People v. Torres , 247 SCRA 212, 217 [1995]; People v. Tayco , 235 SCRA 610, 521 [1995];
People v. Molina, 213 SCRA 52, 65 [1992].
24. People v. Samillano , 207 SCRA 50, 53-54 [1992] citing People v. Alegado , 201 SCRA 37
[1991]; People v. Puedan , 196 SCRA 388 [1991]; People v. Mangalinao , 182 SCRA 329
[1990].
25. People v. Baylon , 57 SCRA 114, 120-121 [1974] see also People v. Cabadas , 208 SCRA
787, 794 [1992]; People v. Sulte, 232 SCRA 421, 425 [1994].
26. Rollo, p. 38.
27. TSN, August 30, 1994, p. 13, 15-16.
28. TSN, August 29, 1994, pp. 28-29.

29. Rollo, p. 50.

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