855 Phil. 434
REYES, A., JR., J.:
Upon being arraigned on July 26, 2016 for violation of Section 11 of R.A. No. 9165, and on August 24, 2016, for violation of Section 5 of the same Act, Bahoyo, assisted by counsel, separately entered a plea of "Not guilty" for the two offenses.[5]Criminal Case No. R-MKT-16-01T56-CR
(Violation of Section 5, Article II, R.A. No. 9165)
On July 17, 2016, in the City of Makati, the Philippines, accused not being lawfully authorized by law and without the corresponding license or prescription, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously sell and distribute one (1) heat sealed plastic sachet containing methamphetamine hydrochloride with a weight of zero point four thousand eight hundred thirty[-]five (0.4835) - gram, a dangerous drug, in consideration of the amount of five hundred (PhP500.00) pesos, in violation of the afore-cited law.
CONTRARY TO LAW.[3]On July 17, 2016, in the City of Makati, the Philippines, accused, not being authorized by law and without the corresponding license or prescription, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously have in his possession, control and direct custody three (3) heat[-]sealed plastic sachets, containing methamphetamine hydrochloride (also known as shabu) with a total weight of zero point five thousand eight hundred eighteen (0.5818) [gram], a dangerous drug, in violation of the afore-said law.Criminal Case No. R-MKT-16-01157-CR
(Violation of Section 11, Article II, R.A. No. 9165)
CONTRARY TO LAW.[4]
WHEREFORE, in view of the foregoing, judgment is hereby rendered as follows:On appeal, the CA affirmed the ruling of the lower court. The appellate court held that the dangerous drugs which constitute the corpus delicti of the offense were properly secured and that the absence of a representative from the Department of Justice and an elected public official is not fatal to the prosecution's case. The dispositive portion of the CA Decision[16] dated November 21, 2017 reads:
1. In Criminal Case No. R-MKT-16-01156-CR, the court finds the accused. Allen Bahoyo y Dela Torre, GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of Violation of Section 5, Article II, RANo. 9165 and sentences him to suffer the penalty of life imprisonment and to pay a fine of Five Hundred [T]housand Pesos (PhP500,000.00).
2. In Criminal Case No. R-MKT-16-01157-CR, the court finds the same accused, Allen Bahoyo y Dela Torre, GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of violation of Section 11, Article II, RANo. 9165 and sentences him to suffer the penalty of imprisonment of twelve (12) years and one (1) day, as minimum, to fourteen (14) years and eight (8) months, as maximum, and to pay a fine of Three Hundred Thousand Pesos (PhP300,000.00).
The period of detention of the accused should be given full credit.
Let the dangerous drugs subject matter of these cases be disposed of in the manner provided for by law.
The Branch Clerk of Court is directed to transmit the plastic sachets containing shabu subject matter of these cases to the PDEA for said agency's appropriate disposition.
SO ORDERED.[15]
PENALTYHence, the present appeal.
Under RA 9165, the penalty for the unauthorized sale of shabu, regardless of quantity and purity, is life imprisonment to death and a fine ranging from PhP500,000.00 to PhP10,000,000.00. However, with the enactment of RA 9346, only life imprisonment and fine shall be imposed. Thus, the penalty imposed by the trial court, which is life imprisonment and a fine of PhP500,000.00, is proper. On the other hand, the penalty for illegal possession of dangerous drugs, is imprisonment of twelve (12) years and one (1) day to twenty (20) years and a fine ranging from PhP300,000.00 to PhP400,000.00, if the quantity is less than five (5) grams. Here, accused-appellant Bahoyo was found to have been in possession of 0.5818 gram of shabu. Hence, he was properly meted the penalty of imprisonment ranging from twelve (12) [years] and one (1) day, as minimum, to fourteen (14) years and eight (8) months[,] as maximum, and a fine of PhP300,000.00.
FOR THESE REASONS, the appeal is DENIED. The assailed Decision dated October 26, 2016 of the Regional Trial Court in Criminal Case Nos. R- MKT-16-01156 to 16-01157 is AFFIRMED.
SO ORDERED.[17]
SEC. 21. Custody and Disposition of Confiscated, Seized, and/or Surrendered Dangerous Drugs, Plant Sources of Dangerous Drugs, Controlled Precursors and Essential Chemicals, Instruments/ Paraphernalia and/or Laboratory Equipment. - The PDEA shall take charge and have custody of all dangerous drugs, plant sources of dangerous drugs, controlled precursors and essential chemicals, as well as instruments/ paraphernalia and/or laboratory equipment so confiscated, seized and/or surrendered, for proper disposition in the following manner:In 2014, R.A. No. 10640[23] amended R.A. No. 9165, specifically Section 21 thereof, to further strengthen the anti-drug campaign of the government. Paragraph 1 of Section 21 was amended, in that the number of witnesses required during the inventory stage was reduced from three (3) to only two (2), to wit:
(1) The apprehending team having initial custody and control of the drugs shall, immediately after seizure and confiscation, physically inventory and photograph the same in the presence of the accused or the person/s from whom such items were confiscated and/or seized, or his/her representative or counsel, a representative from the media and the Department of Justice (DOJ), and any elected public official who shall be required to sign the copies of the inventory and be given a copy thereof. (Emphasis and underscoring Ours)
SEC. 21. Custody and Disposition of Confiscated, Seized, and/or Surrendered. Dangerous Drugs, Plant Sources of Dangerous Drugs, Controlled Precursors and Essential Chemicals, Instruments/Paraphernalia and/or Laboratory Equipment. - The PDEA shall take charge and have custody of all dangerous drugs, plant sources of dangerous drugs, controlled precursors and essential chemicals, as well as instruments/paraphernalia and/or laboratory equipment so confiscated, seized and/or surrendered, for proper disposition in the following manner:A comparison of the cited provisions show that the amendments introduced by R.A. No. 10640 reduced the number of witnesses required to be present during the inventory and taking of photographs. At present, only two witnesses are required - an elected public official AND a representative from the Department of Justice (DOJ) OR the media. It should be noted, however, that even with the passage of R.A. No. 10640, the presence of an elected public official remains indispensable. These witnesses must be present during the inventory stage and are likewise required to sign the copies of the inventory and be given a copy of the same, to ensure that the identity and integrity of the seized items are preserved and that the police officers complied with the required procedure. Failure of the arresting officers to justify the absence of any of the required witnesses shall constitute as a substantial gap in the chain of custody.
(1) The apprehending team having initial custody and control of the dangerous drugs, controlled precursors and essential chemicals, instruments/paraphernalia and/or laboratory equipment shall, immediately after seizure and confiscation, conduct a physical inventory of the seized items and photograph the same in the presence of the accused or the person/s for whom such items were confiscated and/or seized, or his/her representative or counsel, with an elected public official AND a representative of the National Prosecution Service OR the media who shall be required to sign the copies of the inventory and be given a copy thereof: Provided, That the physical inventory and photograph shall be conducted at the place where the search warrant is served; or at the nearest police station or at the nearest office of the apprehending officer/ team whichever is practicable, in case of warrantless seizures: Provided, finally. That noncompliance of these requirements under justifiable grounds, as long as the integrity and the evidentiary value of the seized items are properly by the apprehending officer/ team, shall not render void and invalid such seizures and custody over said items. (Emphasis and underscoring Ours)
Without the insulating presence of the representative from the media or the [DOJ], or any elected public official during the seizure and marking of the [seized drugs], the evils of switching, "planting" or contamination of the evidence that had tainted the buy-busts conducted under the regime of [R.A.] No. 6425 (Dangerous Drugs Act of 1972) again reared their ugly heads as to negate the integrity and credibility of the seizure and confiscation of the [said drugs] that were evidence herein of the corpus delicti, and thus adversely affected the trustworthiness of the incrimination of the accused. x x x[25] (Italics in the original)Based on the findings of the trial court, media representative Morales was the only witness who signed the inventory form. As to whether or not Morales witnessed the actual inventory or had personal knowledge of the circumstances surrounding the possession, sale, recovery or seizure of the dangerous drugs, the same was not duly established by the prosecution. The arresting officers' failure to secure the presence of an elected public official should not be taken lightly. At the very least, they should have alleged that earnest efforts were made to secure the attendance of these mandatory witnesses.
Minor deviations from the procedures under R.A. 9165 would not automatically exonerate an accused from the crimes of which he or she was convicted. This is especially true when the lapses in procedure were recognized and explained in terms of justifiable grounds. There must also be a showing that the police officers intended to comply with the procedure but were thwarted by some justifiable consideration/reason. However, when there is gross disregard of the procedural safeguards prescribed in the substantive law (R.A. 9165), serious uncertainty is generated about the identity of the seized items that the prosecution presented in evidence. This uncertainty cannot be remedied by simply invoking the presumption of regularity in the performance of official duties, for a gross, systematic, or deliberate disregard of the procedural safeguards effectively produces an irregularity in the performance of official duties. As a result, the prosecution is deemed to have failed to fully establish the elements of the crimes charged, creating reasonable doubt on the criminal liability of the accused.Here, the prosecution failed to justify its non-compliance with the requirements laid down in Section 21, specifically, the presence of the two required witnesses during the actual inventory of the seized items. The unjustified absence of an elected public official during the inventory stage constitutes a substantial gap in the chain of custody. Such absence cannot be cured by the simple expedient of alleging that there has been substantial compliance with the requirement. The law is clear. Before the prosecution can rely on the saving clause found in Section 21, it must first establish that non-compliance was based on justifiable grounds and that they put in their best effort to comply with the same but was prevented from doing so by circumstances beyond their control.
For the arresting officers' failure to adduce justifiable grounds, we are led to conclude from the totality of the procedural lapses committed in this case that the arresting officers deliberately disregarded the legal safeguards under R.A. 9165. These lapses effectively produced serious doubts on the integrity and identity of the corpus delicti, especially in the face of allegations of frame-up. Thus, for the foregoing reasons, we must resolve the doubt in favor of accused-appellant, as every fact necessary to constitute the crime must be established by proof beyond reasonable doubt.
As a final note, we reiterate our past rulings calling upon the authorities to exert greater efforts in combating the drug menace using the safeguards that our lawmakers have deemed necessary for the greater benefit of our society. The need to employ a more stringent approach to scrutinizing the evidence of the prosecution especially when the pieces of evidence were derived from a buy-bust operation redounds to the benefit of the criminal justice system by protecting civil liberties and at the same time instilling rigorous discipline on prosecutors.[27] (Citations omitted)