THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, PLAINTIFF AND APPELLANT, VS. RAMON LOPEZ, DEFENDANT AND APPELLEE.

At 10:00 A.M. of December 21,
1960, the Chief of Police of Bacuag, Surigao del Norte, apprehended
three suspicious-looking strangers who were loitering in Pagao, a sitio of Bacuag. A bag which they were carrying was confiscated with
the following contents: three carbines, caliber .30 M1; one revolver, caliber
.22; three flashlights with batteries; two carbine ammunition magazines, fully
loaded; twelve rounds of carbine ammunition; one balisong; a screw driver; seven false keys, one of which was
a master key; trousers; shirts; and a pair of shoes.

After an investigation the
aforesaid persons—Ramon Lopez, Manuel Buico and Arturo
Caniete—were charged in the Justice of the Peace Court
of Bacuag with the crime of illegal possession of
firearms and, in a separate complaint, the crime of illegal possession of false
keys. They pleaded guilty to illegal possession of firearms, not guilty to
illegal, possession of false keys.

Following the transmittal of the
record of the case on illegal possession of false keys to the Court of First
Instance of Surigao del Norte, an
information was filed therein against the three accused,
thus.

“The undersigned Assistant
Provincial Fiscal accuses Manuri, Buico, Ramon Lopez and Arturo Caniete of the crime of Illegal Possession or False Keys
committed as follows:

“That on or about the 21st day of
December, 1960 in the municipality of Bacuag, Province
of Surigao del Norte, Philippines, and within the
jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, the said accused with deliberate and
criminal intent and without lawful cause did then and there willfully,
unlawfully and feloniously have in their possession, custody and control seven
(7) false keys, one of which is a picklock or master key.

“Contrary to
Law. (Article
301 in relation to Article 305, both of the Revised Penal Code), with the
aggravating circumstance that the offenders have been previously punished for an
offense to which the law attaches an equal or greater penalty, that is, same
three accused were on 24 December 1960 convicted of Illegal Possession of
Firearms by the Justice of the Peace Court of Bacuag,
Surigao del Norte, and thereby sentenced ‘to suffer
imprisonment of three (3) years each and fine of P2.000.00 each’ in Criminal
Case No. 374.”

This time, however, Buico and Caniete pleaded guilty.
Lopez, pleading not guilty, stood trial. After the prosecution presented one
witness, said accused moved to dismiss the case on the ground that the facts
charged in the information do not constitute an offense. It was argued that an
essential element of illegal possession of false was not alleged, namely, that
the picklock or false in the possession of the accused were “specially Adapted
to the commission of the crime of robbery”. Thereupon, the trial court dismissed
the case. The prosecution, with commendable sense of duty,
appealed.

Article 304 of the Revised Penal
Code provides:

“Art. 304. Possession of
picklocks or similar tools.—Any person who shall without lawful cause have
in his possession picklocks or similar tools specially adapted to the commission
of the crime of robbery, shall be punished by arresto mayor in its maximum period to prision correctional in its minimum
period.”

Such crime of illegal possession
of picklocks or similar tools has, accordingly, two elements: (1) possession of
picklocks or similar tools specially adapted to the commission of the crime of
robbery; (2) such possession is without lawful cause.

The information alleged that the
accused possessed, “without lawful cause . . . seven (7) false keys,
one of which is a picklock or master key“. (Italics
supplied.)

A picklock—a tool used in picking
locks—is in itself specially adapted to the commission of robbery of the kind
provided for in Articles 299 (a) 3 and 302, par. 3 of the Revised Penal
Code:

“ART. 299. Robbery in an
inhabited house or public building or Office devoted to worship.—Any armed
person who shall commit robbery in an inhabited house or public building or
edifice devoted to religious worship, shall be punished by reclusion
temporal, if the value of the property taken shall exceed 250 pesos, and
if—

“(a) The
malefactors shall enter the house or building in which the robbery was
committed, by any of the following means:

*******

“3. By using false keys,
picklocks or similar tools.” supplied.)

Art. 302. Robbery in an
uninhabited place or in a private building. – Any robbery committed in an
uninhabited place or in a building other than those mentioned in the first
paragraph of article 299, if the value of the property taken exceeds 250 pesos,
shall be punished by prision correccional in its medium and maximum periods provided
that any of the following circumstances is present:

*******

“3. If the entrance has been effected through the use of keys, picklocks
or other similar tools.” (Italics supplied.)

Since picking of locks is one way
to gain entrance to commit robbery, a picklock is per se specially adapted to
the commission of robbery. The description in the information of a picklock as
“specially adapted to the commission of robbery” is therefore unnecessary for
its sufficiency. Notwithstanding the omission of such superfluous description,
therefore, the charge of the offense of illegal possession of a picklock is
.valid. We find both elements of the crime clearly alleged in the information in
question.

Furthermore, the information
alleged illegal possession of “seven (7) false keys.” The Revised Penal Code, in
Article 306 defines “false keys” to include “the tools mentioned in the next
preceding article.” Article 304— “”the next preceding article”—mentions
“picklocks or similar tools specially adapted to the commission of the crime of
robbery.” It follows that the term “false keys” appearing in the information
sufficiently describes such tools.

Wherefore, the order quashing the
information is hereby set aside and the case is remanded for further trial,
without costs. It is so ordered.

Bautista Angela, Concepcion, Reyes, J. B. L., Barrera, Paredes, Dizon, Regala, Makalintal, and Zaldivar, JJ.,
concur.