342 Phil. 539
PADILLA, J.:
“The undersigned, Provincial Prosecutor, accuses Dante Castro, Oscar Castro, Rito Castro, Joel Castro, George Castro alias Jong, Caridad Menor y Castro alias Caring, and Genisia Garcia y Castro alias Jining of the crime of Murder, defined and penalized under Article 248 of the Revised Penal Code, committed as follows:On 10 February 1992, the accused, assisted by counsel, were arraigned and pleaded not guilty to the charge. Defense counsel waived pre-trial for the accused and moved for continuous trial which commenced on 2 March 1992 and terminating on 15 February 1994 when both prosecution and defense submitted the case for resolution.
That on or about August 22, 1991, in the Municipality of Amulung, Province of Cagayan, and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, the said accused, Dante Castro, Oscar Castro, Rito Castro, Joel Castro, Caring and Genesia Garcia y Castro alias Jining, armed with long handled bolos (tabas), spear and gun, conspiring together and helping one another with intent to kill, with evident premeditation, treachery and taking advantage of superior strength did then and there wilfully, unlawfully and feloniously attack, assault, stab, hack and shoot one, Alfonso Sosia, inflicting upon him several injuries on the different parts of his body which caused his death.
Contrary to law.”
“WHEREFORE, finding the accused Oscar Castro, Dante Castro, Rito Casro, Joel Castro and George Castro guilty beyond all reasonable doubt of the crime of Murder as penalized under Art. 248, of the Revised Penal Code, they are hereby sentenced separately of [sic] the following penalties:1. To Oscar, an indeterminate sentence of 10 years and 1 day of prision mayor to 18 years, 8 months and 1 day of reclusion temporal medium;
“In the morning of August 22, 1991, Clodualdo Escobar went to Barangay Bacring, Amulung, Cagayan to supervise the cultivation and preparation of his agricultural property, consisting of 25 hectares (TSN, March 2, 1992, pp. 14-15).In their brief, appellants attempted to show that the testimony of Lourdes Sosia* (victim’s wife) during the trial and the affidavit she executed on 27 August 1991 were contrived and devised. Appellants aver that in an interview by SPO1 Pedrito Catil of Lourdes Sosia on 22 August 1991, right after the incident in question took place, the latter informed the police investigator that it was only Oscar Castro who was the assailant of her husband Alfonso Sosia. According to appellants, such statement which was made on the same day the incident happened, should have been regarded by the trial court as part of the res gestae for it was made after stratling occurrence before she had time to concoct lies or to fabricate an account.
Escobar and his tenant and overseer Alfonso Socia, who was carrying a harrow borrowed from Romulo Garcia, were on their way to the farm when they met appellants Oscar Castro, Joel Castro, Rito Castro, Dante Castro and George Castro. Genecia Castro and Caridad Castro were also with the group(pp. 17-18, Ibid.).
Escobar was ahead of Socia by a distance of four (4) to five (5) meters. Appellant Oscar Castro, the leader of the group asked Escobar and Socia where they were going (Ibid.). Fear gripped Escobar, because appellants Oscar, Rito and Joel were all carrying boloes. Without waiting for an answer, appellant Oscar hit the left hand of Socia who was behind Escobar. Escobar was at that time moving backward, facing the appellants (p. 19, Ibid.). After Socia was hit, he tried to shield himself with the harrow he was carrying. Then came a series of stab and hacking blows from appellants Dante and George. George hacked the shoulder of Socia, while Dante stabbed the right forearm of Socia with a long bolo (Ibid., p. 20).
Appellant George was at the back of Socia at the left side of Dante when he delivered the stab blow. Dante and George came from the back of the house of Ernesto Garcia when they hit Socia. George was carrying a yellow sack, where he got a handgun which he gave to his uncle Rito, who immediately fired it and shot the lying Socia (p. 21, Ibid.).
All the appellants triumphantly shouted “nangabak kamin (meaning: We won.) (Ibid, p. 22). For fear that Rito might shoot him, Escobar retreated twenty-five (25) meters away. On the other hand, Caridad Castro used a spear to block Lourdes Castro [sic] who was calling for help. Genecia Castro meanwhile was shouting, "Adda pay ni Lakay Escobar, patayen yo pay” (meaning: Here is oldman Escobar, kill him also (Ibid., pp. 23-25).
After Socia fell, he was placed in a hammock and brought to Tuguegarao, Cagayan for treatment but died on the way. The body was brought to the house of one Rodolfo Farinas at Bayabat, Cagayan. The incident was reported to the 111th Philippine Constabulary detachment at Bayabat, Cagayan (Ibid., pp. 29-30).”[3]
(a) That the principal fact, the res gestae, be a startling occurrence;Appellants further allege that the testimony in court of Lourdes Sosia implicating all the appellants in the crime charged is not the product of a natural and spontaneous reaction or response.
(b) that the statements were made before the declarant had time to contrive or devise; and
(c) that the statements must concern the occurrence in question and its immediately attending circumstances.”[4]
“Now, coming to the individual alibi put up by Dante Castro, Rito Castro, Joel Castro and George Castro, suffice it to state, that the defenses of alibi put up by the four male accused are unconvincing and unworthy of belief. Take the case of Dante Castro and Rito Castro. These two accused alleged that they went to Barangay Unag, Amulung, Cagayan, in the morning of August 21, 1991. True it is , that Eduardo Tabbu declared thathesaw the two accused in the morning of August 21, 1991, at the house of Anita Tabbu and Ricardo Aglibar, but there is no proof that they slept in the house of the Aglibars on the night of August 21, 1991. Even granting that Dante Castro and Rito Castro really went to Barangay Unag in the mornign of August 21 to plow the field of Ricardo Aglibar who was sick, but this does not prove that they slept in the latter’s house on August 21, 1991. Anita Tabbu or Ricardo Aglibar should have been called upon to testify that said accused did not go home to Bacring in the afternoon or night of August 21, and stayed in said barangay up to August 24, when the two accused allegedly went home.In the defense of alibi put up by Dante and Rito Castro, the court a quo found that the distance between Bacring and Barangay Unag is seven (7) kilometers and can be negotiated by hiking or walking in two (2) hours. Moreover, Such alibi was completely shattered when rebuttal prosecution witnesses Loreto Garcia and Clodualdo Escobar testified that Dante Castro was seen by them in the afternoon of 21 August 1991 at the premises of Garcia’s house when Escobar was about to fetch water from the artesian well. These declarations were not refuted by the appellants Dante and Rito Castro.
The alibi put up by Dante Castro and Rito Castro was shattered to pieces and blown to oblivion when Loreto Garcia and Escobar testified as rebuttal witnesses declaring that Dante Castro was seen by these two rebuttal witnesses in the afternoon of August 21, 1991 near the premises of Loreto Garcia’s house, when Escobar was about to fetch water from the artesian well. Dante Castro and Rito Castro failed to refute these declarations of Escobar and Garcia.
Loreto Garcia’s testimony carries great weight considering that Dante Castro, Rito Castro and Oscar Castro are the nephews of Loreto Garcia, because Genecia Garcia-Castro, mother of Dante, Oscar and Rito, is the sister of Loreto Garcia.
The alibi of Joel Castro that he was sick, suffering from cold and fever on August 22, 1991, would not also hold water. If really Joel Castro was sick, then Laboreto Peana, the councilman in their place, should not have sent Joel Castro to call for barangay captain. Neither Laboreto Peana or Jose Peana stated that Joel Castro was sick. Even assuming that Joel Castro was sick and he forced himself to report the incident to the barangay captain, what would prevent said accused from being at the scene of the crime where Alfonso Socia was killed since he could walk and roam around.
The pretensions of George Castro that after Alfonso Socia fired at him, he went to the house of his Auntie Betty Donato y Castro and stayed there up to 3:00 P.M. deserves scant consideration because Betty Donato was not called upon to testify. The fact alone that George Castro failed to report to his auntie what happened to him, that is, that Socia fired at him seriously impaired and weakened his claim of alibi.”[7]
“There is proof that the Castros are very closely knit family. They live in the same barangay and their houses are almost adjacent to each other. Although it may be true that only Escobar and Oscar Castro are wrangling or quarelling over Lot 30, and this involves also Alfonso Sosia due to his closeness to Escobar, with the latter intending to transfer the possession of Lot 30 to Alfonso Socia, nevertheless, the oft-repeated saying: ‘that blood is thicker than water’ applies. In the tagalog adage: ‘Ang sakit ng kalingkingan ay sakit ng buong katawan,’ equally applies. Simply stated, the problem of Oscar Castro is the problem of the whole Castro Clan.”[8]In conclusion, the court below declared:
“Was there conspiracy in the killing of Alfonso Socia? Art. 8, par. 2 of the Penal Code, defines conspiracy, as when two or more persons come to an agreement concerning the commission of a felony and decide to commit it. To establish conspiracy, it is not essential that there be proof as to previous agreement to commit a crime. It is sufficient that the malefactors shall have acted in concert pursuant to the same objective. (PP. vs San Luis, 86 Phil. 485; PP. vs. Timbol, GR No. 47473; PP. vs. Tian, 77 Phil. 1090). In the following cases there was implied conspiracy where four brothers attacked a victim (PP. vs Khaw Dy, 109 Phil. 649). Where five defendants converged upon the scene of the crime at the same time (PP. vs. Licuana, 88 Phil. 789) where the five defendants were closely related to one another and had a common grievance to redress.All told, the constitutional presumption of innocence in favor of the accused–appellants Dante, Rito, Joel, George and Oscar all surnamed Castro has been overcome by proof beyond reasonable doubt.
In the case at bar, brothers, nephews and sons converged in one place attacked, stabbed, hacked and shot Alfonso Socia are clear evidence of implied conspiracy.”[9]