398 Phil. 1040
PANGANIBAN, J.:
"That on or about the 21st day of January 1995, in the City of Iloilo, Philippines, and within the jurisdiction of this Court, said accused, armed with guns and knives, conspiring and confederating among themselves, working together and helping one another, taking advantage of their superior strength, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and criminally shoot and stab to death Francisco S. Pe, Sr. with the said guns and knives with which the herein accused were provided at the time, at the different parts of his body causing his instantaneous death."
"WHEREFORE, finding the accused Anthony Mana-ay, Emmanuel Mana-ay, Julius Mana-ay and Nilbert Banderado guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of [m]urder defined and penalized under Article 248 of the Revised Penal Code as amended by Rep. Act No. 7659, there being evidence of complicity, judgment is hereby rendered sentencing the said accused as principals by direct participation with the penalty of reclusion perpetua, with all accessory penalties of the law. In addition, each [of the] four above-named accused is ordered to pay the heirs of the late Francisco Salvani Pe the sum of P50,000.00 or a total of P200,000.00 as civil indemnity for the death of Francisco Pe and the further sum of P404,860.75 for actual damages and attorney's fees, P300,000.00 for moral damages and P200,000.00 for exemplary damages, jointly and severally, with costs."[6]
"On January 21, 1995, at around 5:30 p.m., Editha Pe Tan was cleaning their house located at 22-A Valeria Extension, Brgy. Kauswagan, Iloilo City, when she heard two (2) gunshots coming from Central Radio and Electronic School (CRES) which is adjacent to their house. She looked outside the gate and saw people running from Quezon Street to Valeria Street. She immediately closed the gate (pp. 4, 7 and 10, TSN, March 14, 1995).
"Thereafter, Editha's father, Francisco Pe, who was a Barangay Kagawad of Barangay Kauswagan, Iloilo City, asked her about the gunshots. She informed him that people were running in the alley. Francisco wanted to go out of the house to see what was happening but Editha advised him not to go out. Despite the advice, Francisco went out [of] their house towards Valeria Street. Editha followed him (pp. 7-8, ibid.).
"Francisco talked to people passing at Valeria Street. Suddenly, Editha, who was then more or less 8 meters from her father, saw people running towards her father. Then, she saw Victorio and Anthony, both surnamed Mana-ay, carrying guns (pp. 10-11, ibid.). Victorio shouted: "[S]ons of bitches, you are too much!" Francisco turned around while the people whom he was talking to moved away. Then, Victorio shot Francisco followed by Anthony with another shot. Wounded, Francisco leaned on the gate of the CRES. Still, Anthony approached Francisco and pointed his gun at the latter's head. Francisco held Anthony's arm and they grappled for possession of the gun. (pp. 13-14, ibid.)
"Editha then heard successive shots and saw Victorio jump on her father while appellants Julius and Emmanuel Mana-ay, Nilbert Banderado with 2 or 3 others ganged up on her father and stabbed him (p. 14, ibid).
"Editha ran towards their house and sought help. Her husband, Romulo Tan, responded and they went out of the house. She saw her bloodied father lying lifeless on the street. She returned to the house to get their Nissan pick-up to bring her father to St. Paul's Hospital where her father died (pp.15-16, ibid.).
"Dr. Tito D. Doromal conducted an autopsy on the cadaver of Francisco Pe x x x."[10]
"Emmanuel Mana-ay, younger brother of Victorio Mana-ay testified that after 5:30 o' clock in the afternoon of January 21, 1995, on arriving at the house of their mother in Barangay Kauswagan, Iloilo City, where he [had been] boarding [since] January, he heard three shots. At first, he ignored them, but later he saw his brother Victorio Mana-ay lying on his back and bloodied. He, together with Nilbert Banderado, carried Victorio [to a] tricycle and brought him to St. Paul's Hospital. He stayed in the hospital while Banderado went home. While in the hospital, a policeman arrived and asked him to go with them to a house in Quezon Street. They went inside the house and looked for Nilbert Banderado but did not find him. When they found Anthony Mana-ay, they picked him up and brought him to the police precinct. He never executed an affidavit containing the things that he is testifying [to] in court during the preliminary investigation at the City Prosecutor's Office in connection with this case. He said he never told his lawyer about what he is [saying] in the court on the witness stand. He personally knows the victim Francisco Pe being a kagawad member in their barangay and his daughter Editha Pe Tan. So far he does not know of any reason [why] Editha Pe Tan would pinpoint him and the other accused as the killer of her father, since he knows of no misunderstanding or grudge whatsoever between him and the family of Editha Pe Tan or with the late Francisco Pe. He admits tha[t] [o]n the afternoon of January 21, 1995, he saw Victorio Mana-ay drinking beer at his mother's house with his friends. In the same [breath], he is sure he also went to the place where Victorio Mana-ay was allegedly shot [while] already lying on his back. From his mother's house where he was boarding, CRES can be negotiated in a matter of three (3) minutes more specifically to the place where he saw his brother lying fifteen (15) meters afar.[sic] When he saw his brother lying on his back it never entered his mind to inquire who shot his brother, but he learned from the people that it was Francisco Pe who shot his brother."[12]
"1. On or about 4:30 o'clock [o]n the afternoon of January 21, 1995, accused-appellant Anthony Mana-ay was [waiting] for a ride of trisikad at Block 6, Barangay Sinikway, Lapuz, Iloilo City (TSN, p. 3, November 17, 1997);
"2. However, there was no available trisikad at the time, so, he was forced to walk to Block 8 of the same Barangay. While he was walking, he met Alberto Fabellar who was likewise going to the city proper and [so], they went together by riding in a jeep (Ibid; also TSN, pp. 7-8, November 10, 1997);
"3. They alighted at Ledesma Street and walked towards the house of her grandmother Leonisa located at Valeria Street, Barangay Kauswagan. While they were walking, Alberto Alvior called them up and offered a bottle of beer x x x which they willingly accepted (TSN, p. 9, November 10, 1997);
"4. All of a sudden, appellant Anthony Mana-ay heard three (3) gunshots, but he did not mind [them] considering that it was then Dinagyang Festival (TSN, p. 11, November 10, 1997);
"5. After a minute or two, he heard again several gunshots emanating from the alley of Central Radio and Electronic School (CRES, for brevity). There were noises that were heard and people all over the place were running towards Valeria and De Leon Streets. And somebody shouted that a shooting incident [was] taking place (TSN, p. 11-12, November 1997);
"6. When the commotion started to calm down, he, together with Alberto Fabellar, slowly edged towards the alley because they have to pass through it in going to his lola's house. There, he saw three (3) persons, x x x two (2) of w[hom] were watching while the other one was stabbing somebody (TSN, pp. 7-8, November 17, 1997);
"7. He noticed that [one of] the two (2) persons who were watching [was] a tall man wearing a long sleeve jacket and maong pants and the other one was wearing a white T-shirt with maong pants. He learned that these two persons were Arnold Palacios and Abdon Bartolome. And, the other person who was stabbing [someone] turn[ed] out to be Julius Mana-ay, his first cousin (TSN, pp. 8-11, November 17, 1997);
"8. He recognized Julius Mana-ay when the latter stood up after stabbing the person lying down, and likewise saw that the latter dropped the knife and picked up the gun which he found lying nearby. He then shouted to Julius, "Julius, don't" and immediately r[a]n towards the latter, held the hand that was holding the gun and they grappled for the possession of the same, and in the process the gun fired [at] the air after Julius accidentally squeezed the trigger (TSN, pp. 9, 10, 11, 12, November 17, 1997);
"9. The gun fell down to the ground after it was fired and he saw his uncle, Victorio Mana-ay, lying near the gate of CRES. He told Julius, "we should help [bring] Uncle Bikil (Victorio) to x x x to the hospital" but, Julius answered back "I am wounded" (TSN, p. 12, November 17, 1997);
"10. After Julius rejected his plea, he raised his uncle from the ground, [and] carried him on his shoulder in order to be brought to the hospital. Because, he was tired, he was not able to bring his uncle to the hospital, so he decided to place him beside Bernal Funeral Homes (TSN, p. 14, November 17, 1997);
"11. Thereafter, he proceeded to the house of his Lola Leonisa, and there, saw his other Uncle Emmanuel Mana-ay [go] inside the room of his Lola and [ask] for money in order that Victorio Mana-ay might be brought to the hospital (TSN, p. 15, November 17, 1997);
"12. He did not accompany his Uncle Emmanuel in bringing Victorio to the hospital because his Lola prevailed [upon] him so he just stayed at his Lola's house (TSN, p. 15, November 17, 1997);
"13. Moments later, Emmanuel arrived with police officers and they asked him x x x his name x x x which he voluntarily gave. After they learned that his family name [was] Mana-ay, he was immediately handcuffed and pulled outside together with Emmanuel and herded to a waiting police car in order to be brought to the police station (TSN, p. 17, November 17, 1997). At the police station, they were investigated and queried as to who shot Victorio Mana-ay and Francisco Pe, to which they answered that they ha[d] no knowledge of the same. As such, the police officers told them that they [would] be brought to the hospital in order to see Victorio. But, instead of bringing them to Victorio, they were brought to a room in the hospital with a woman inside. The police officers told this woman to point to them as the perpetrators of the killing incident to which this woman voluntarily turned down. [sic] This woman turn[ed] out to be Editha Pe Tan, the daughter of Francisco Pe. (TSN, pp. 17, 18, November 17, 1997);
"14. Then they were returned x x x to the police station where they were detained and ultimately charged with murder."[14]
"During the presentation of evidence for the defense, accused Julius Mana-ay set up the theory of defense of relative. He averred that while resting in their house located at Barangay Kauswagan, Iloilo City, at around 5:50 o' clock in the afternoon of January 21, 1995, he was informed that his father Victorio Mana-ay was shot outside of their residence, prompting him to get out of their house and proceed to the place where his father was shot. Upon arriving at the alley between Central Radio and Electronic School and its annex building, he saw his father being shot. He actually saw this person who shot his father and his name was Francisco Pe. His father was in the act of falling down when he saw Francisco Pe shoot his father at a distance of four (4) meters). He was about to help his father stand up when he saw a knife beside the place where his father fell. Seized with anger, Julius Mana-ay took the knife and stabbed Francisco Pe. However, he cannot recall how many times he stabbed the latter. After he stabbed Francisco Pe, the latter shot him thereby hitting him at the level of his right nipple, then he felt that somebody was shooting him from behind when the back part of his right arm was hit. Later, he saw that the person shooting him from the back was Romulo Tan, the son-in-law of Francisco Pe."[16]Lastly, Nilbert Banderado's Brief[17] contained the following narration of facts:
"On January 21, 1995, at around 5:30 in the afternoon, the accused Nilbert Banderado was at his boarding house at Barangay Kauswagan, Quezon St., Iloilo City preparing for dinner. At the same boarding house, he was with Emmanuel Mana-ay who was eating his dinner. While there at the time, Nilbert Banderado heard shouts coming from way outside that Victoria Mana-ay met an accident. Nilbert Banderado followed Emmanuel Mana-ay, the brother of Victorio Mana-ay, who went through the footwalk towards the alley connecting Quezon Street and Valeria Street, Iloilo City. At the corner of the foot walk and the alley where there was a post, he saw Victorio Mana-ay lying in his back and covered with blood over his body surrounded by people. Upon seeing Victorio Mana-ay in such condition, Nilbert Banderado and Emmanuel Mana-ay carried Victorio Mana-ay, with the help of two other persons, to the tricycle and brought him to St. Paul's Hospital. After Victorio Mana-ay was brought to the emergency room, Nilbert Banderado took some rest and later went back to his boarding house to tell his "Lola" - Leonisa Mana-ay - that they brought Victorio Mana-ay to St. Paul's Hospital. About five minutes later, the policeman came and brought Nilbert Banderado to the police station for investigation and later charged him for the killing of Francisco Pe."
"The honorable trial court erred in holding all accused including Emmanuel Mana-ay guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of murder defined and penalized under Article 248 of the Revised Penal Code as amended by Republic Act No. 7659, x x x."[18]
"I. The trial court erred in not applying in this case the well-settled rule that where the evidence gives rise to two probabilities, one consistent with the accused's innocence and another indicative of his guilt, the presumption of innocence must prevail and the court must acquit.
"II. The trial court erred when it concluded that the prosecution has proven the guilt of accused-appellant Anthony Mana-ay beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of murder and that the existence of conspiracy between the appellants was sufficiently established."[19]
"The court a quo erred in not applying the justifying circumstance of defense of relative to accused Julius Mana-ay."[20]
"I
The trial court erred in giving full faith and credence to the testimony of the prosecution witness Editha Pe Tan despite existing serious flaws that create doubt [about] its truthfulness and credibility."II
The trial court erred in finding Nilbert Banderado guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the murder of Francisco Pe, with the admission of one of the accused and the tumultuous circumstances surrounding the incident."[21]
During the lengthy cross-examination, the lawyers for appellants harped on several points to discredit Editha. First, they pointed out that she did not mention Julius Mana-ay as one of the malefactors in the direct examination. Second, they denounced her seemingly selective recollection of people and faces, as she could not remember the people whom her father was talking to just before he was attacked. Third, they insisted that she had learned of the names of appellants, only because the police investigators had given these to her beforehand.
"Q And what happened when you saw your father? A He asked me about the two (2) shots. Q What did you answer? A I told him that there was a commotion, that people were running in our alley. Q And what did your father do? A Since the gate was closed, he wanted to go out. Q Before your father went out, did you tell him anything? A I told him that the commotion was already finished and that he should not go out. x x x x x x x x x Q What did he say? A He told me that he had to go out because of his position in our barangay. That he should know what was happening in his vicinity. Q What was his position at that time? A He was a barangay kagawad. x x x x x x x x x Q At the time your father went out, please tell us the illumination of the light? A It was still well lighted. Q When your father insisted and went out of the gate, what did you do? A When he went out I was following him and I also went out of the gate. Q And where did your father go? A He went directly to the left side of the gate of CRES. Q This direction in which your father went was towards what place? A Going to Valeria St. x x x x x x x x x Q Now, before he crossed from the left side to the right side of the gate of CRES, did you see what your father was doing on the left gate? A He was talking to people passing Valeria St., while his back was turned towards me. Q And at that time, how far were you from your father? A More or less 8 meters. Q Now you said that your father was talking with some people on the left side of the alley towards the left gate of CRES and later on he crossed the right side of the alley[;] what did he do? A There were people there to whom he was talking. x x x x x x x x x Q Mrs. Tan, a while ago, you testified that your father went out of the gate, went to the alley towards the direction of Valeria St, and talked to people there and later on transferred to the right gate and talked to some other people or persons, is that correct? A Yes, sir. Q Now, at that time that your father was there with his back turned towards you and talking with some other people [at a] distance of eight (8) meters more or less[, at] that time where [were] you x x x situated in relation to your house? A Facing towards Valeria St., I was on the left side of the gate. Q Inside or outside? A Outside. Q And while you were there, what happened? A I saw people running from Quezon St. Q And to what direction were they going? A Going towards Valeria St. Q Towards the place where your father was talking with some persons? A Yes, sir. Q What did you observe about the people coming from Quezon St.? A I saw two persons following one another and the other person, the first one was holding a gun, which was covered, and the other person following him was carrying a gun. x x x x x x x x x Q And aside from these two (2) persons you saw, were there other persons following them? A There were. Q How many? A Five (5) or six (6) persons. Q What did you observe [about] these five (5) or six (6) persons? A They were holding knives. Q I will call back your attention to the first person you saw holding a gun covered with a cloth, do you know that [person]? A I knew him by face. x x x x x x x x x Q What is his name? A Victorio Mana-ay. x x x x x x x x x Q The second person you saw following Victorio Mana-ay who was also holding a gun, do you know his name? A Yes, sir. Q What is his name? A Anthony Mana-ay. x x x x x x x x x Q You also mentioned that there were five (5) or six (6) persons following the first two (2) persons, did you know any of that five (5) or six (6) persons holding knives? A I knew them by their faces. Q Do you know any of them by name? A Yes, sir. Q Please tell the court who was that [person] following Victorio and Anthony Mana-ay[.] A Nilbert Banderado. x x x x x x x x x Q Aside from Nilbert Banderado, do you know any other persons by name following Victorio and Anthony Mana-ay? A Yes, sir. Q Who else? A Emmanuel Mana-ay. x x x x x x x x x Q Mrs. Tan, you testified a while ago that Victorio Mana-ay was holding a gun covered x x x [with] cloth and Anthony Mana-ay was holding a gun followed by five (5) or six (6) persons going towards your father. Later on, when they passed by you, what happened? A Victorio Mana-ay was shouting "son[s] of bitches you are too much." Q A while ago, you mentioned that your father was talking to some persons when Victorio and Anthony Mana-ay arrived and Victorio shouted[;] what happened to those persons your father was talking to? A They started to move away. Q After your father turned around, did he turn towards Victorio Mana-ay? A Yes, sir. Q After your father turned around, what happened? A He was then shot by Victorio Mana-ay, and followed by Anthony Mana-ay. Q And after Victorio and Anthony Mana-ay shot your father, what happened to your father? A He was able to lean on the gate of CRES. Q And as he was leaning on the gate of CRES, what did Anthony Mana-ay do? A Anthony Mana-ay went very near him and pointed his gun towards his head. Q And what happened after that? A My father was able to hold the arm of Anthony Mana-ay in [the] hand x x x holding the gun and they grappled with each other. Q During the time that Anthony Mana-ay and your father Francisco Pe were grappling with each other, where was Victorio Mana-ay? A Victorio Mana-ay was at the right side of my father, watching. Q And later on, while Francisco Pe and Anthony Mana-ay were grappling with each other, what happened? A My father, who was leaning on the gate of CRES was gradually falling down and I heard successive shots. Q After you heard those successive shots, what happened to your father? A My father was jumped upon by Victorio Mana-ay. Q Now, during the time that your father and Anthony Mana-ay were grappling with each other, where were those five or six other persons? A Some were on the right side of my father, and some were on his left. Q After Victorio Mana-ay jumped on your father, what did these other five or six persons do? x x x x x x x x x A They ganged up on my father and they stabbed him. Q Do these five or six other persons include Emmanuel Mana-ay and Nilbert Banderado? A Yes, sir."[26]