### Facts:
1. **Incident and Arrest (December 4-5, 1993):**
– Juanito and Mario Quirol attended a “benefit disco dance” in Apas, Lahug, Cebu City.
– Both victims, Benjamin Silva and Roel Ngujo, were also at the event.
– Wilson Cruz, a witness, saw the two victims being frisked, bound, and escorted by PO3 Jed Daloso towards the old airport’s runway.
– Jed shot Benjamin Silva, while Juanito and Mario stabbed and held Roel Ngujo before Jed shot him as well.
2. **Subsequent Events:**
– Early next morning, Juanito was seen intoxicated and left his Batangas knife at his foreman’s house. The knife later revealed human bloodstains.
– Mario and Juanito were arrested by the police four days later; Juanito’s knife was collected as evidence.
3. **Trial Court (RTC Cebu) Proceedings:**
– The trial commenced, and Juanito admitted presence but denied involvement, while Mario used alibi as a defense. Wilson Cruz testified as the eye-witness.
– Verdict: Both were convicted for double murder, sentenced to reclusion perpetua.
4. **Court of Appeals Decision:**
– Affirmed RTC’s conviction.
– Modified penalties to reclusion perpetua for each murder and increased moral damages to P50,000 each for the heirs of the victims.
### Issues:
1. **Sufficiency of Prosecution’s Evidence:**
– Whether Wilson Cruz’s testimony was credible and convincing enough to establish guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
2. **Existence of Conspiracy:**
– Whether actions of Juanito, Mario, and Jed demonstrated a conspiracy to commit murder.
3. **Defense of Alibi and Denial:**
– Validity of Mario’s alibi and Juanito’s denial of direct participation in the killings.
4. **Qualification of Crime:**
– Whether the murders were correctly qualified as such based on the presence of treachery.
5. **Appropriateness of Penalties and Damages:**
– Proper penalty given the crime occurred before the Death Penalty Law (R.A. 7659).
– Correctness of awarded damages to the heirs of the victims.
### Court’s Decision:
1. **Sufficiency of Evidence:**
– **Decision:** The Supreme Court upheld the conviction due to the credible and detailed testimony of Wilson Cruz which was deemed reliable.
– **Reasoning:** Discrepancies claimed by the defense were not substantiated by evidence.
2. **Existence of Conspiracy:**
– **Decision:** Affirmed finding of conspiracy.
– **Reasoning:** Coordinated actions of all accused in executing the murders demonstrated a clear common purpose and design.
3. **Defense of Alibi and Denial:**
– **Decision:** Rejected Mario’s alibi and Juanito’s claim of non-involvement.
– **Reasoning:** Positive identification by an eyewitness coupled with evidence overwhelmed the alibi defense and denial. Alibi inherently weak, especially since Mario was physically capable of being at the crime scene.
4. **Qualification of Crime:**
– **Decision:** Treachery was present, justifying qualification of the crime as murder.
– **Reasoning:** Actions were deliberately planned to eliminate any chance of self-defense by the victims.
5. **Penalties and Damages:**
– **Decision:** Imposed reclusion perpetua consistent with penalties applicable prior to R.A. 7659.
– **Reasoning:** No modifying circumstances affecting penalty. Actual damages were substituted with temperate damages in the amount of P15,000 each for lack of certainty regarding pecuniary loss.
### Doctrine:
– **Credibility of Witness Testimony:** A witness’s failure to act in expected ways during a crime does not necessarily undermine their testimony.
– **Conspiracy:** Proven not only with direct evidence but also by coordinated actions indicating common purpose.
– **Treachery:** Determined by unexpected, deliberate actions that incapacitate the victim’s ability to defend themselves.
### Class Notes:
– **Key Elements for Murder (Philippines):**
1. Intentional killing.
2. Qualified by treachery when the mode of execution ensures defenselessness of the victim.
– **Witness Testimony:**
– Credibility assessed by trial courts generally stands unless glaring mistakes are evident.
– **Conspiracy:**
– Requires showing of concerted actions indicating a unified criminal intent.
– **Treachery:**
– Must be deliberate and calculated; ensures victim has no chance to defend or retaliate.
– **Art. 248 of RPC (Revised Penal Code):**
– Murder is punishable by reclusion perpetua to death (before R.A. 7659).
– **Damages:**
– Temperate damages awarded when actual pecuniary loss is clear but amount uncertain.
### Historical Background:
– **Significance of RA. 7659:** Approved on December 13, 1993, this law augmented penalties for crimes including murder, underscoring the penal shift towards harsher punishments for heinous crimes during the early 90s in the Philippines.
This case illustrates judicial principles in handling credible testimony, conspiracy, treachery, appropriate penalties, and damages while emphasizing respect for trial court’s factual findings in the Philippine legal context.
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