G.R. No. 100771 . May 28, 1993.
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. ROMEO PAMINTUAN, EDGAR PABALAN Y BENAMIRA, MARIO BRIONES Y GUINTO, FRANCISCO VILLANUEVA Y SEVILLA, SAMMY ORGA, EDU SENUBIO, ALFREDO MENDOZA, FERNANDO MIRANDA, DINO STA. ANA, RICARDO SOLIS, JR., CHRISTOPHER NUEVO, ABELARDO PARUNGAO, ANTONIO LOPIGA, RONNIE PILAPIL Y ESAYA, VIVENCIO FELICIANO Y BASBA, and GERARDO JAVIER Y ALLIED, accused, ROMEO PAMINTUAN, EDGAR PABALAN, MARIO BRIONES and RONNIE PILAPIL, accused-appellants.

FACTS

An information was filed charging multiple accused with the crime of Robbery with Homicide and Serious Physical Injuries. The charge stemmed from events on May 30, 1989, inside the Pampanga Provincial Jail. The accused, who were cellmates, allegedly conspired to escape. In the process, they attacked, assaulted, and employed violence upon jail guards Conrado Basa, Emilardo Valencia, and Arnel Aldana using bamboo sticks, resulting in the deaths of Basa and Valencia and serious physical injuries to Aldana. They also took six firearms from the jail armory. Only accused-appellants Romeo Pamintuan, Edgar Pabalan, Mario Briones, and Ronnie Pilapil (along with Vivencio Feliciano and Gerardo Javier) were rearrested and arraigned; others remained at large or were otherwise unavailable. The accused-appellants pleaded not guilty. After the prosecution rested, the defense presented no evidence. The trial court found accused-appellants guilty beyond reasonable doubt and sentenced them to “life imprisonment” and to pay damages. Accused-appellants appealed, claiming the prosecution failed to establish their participation and passing blame to those still at large.

ISSUE

Whether the trial court erred in finding accused-appellants guilty of the crime charged.

RULING

The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction but modified the penalty and the designation of the offense. The Court held that the participation of each appellant was established by testimonial evidence: Pabalan participated in the beating of Guard Basa and the forcible opening of the armory; Pamintuan gave the escape signal, opened gates, and attacked guards Aldana and Valencia; Pilapil was part of the escaping group and tried to stab Aldana; and Briones was present, armed, and reminded co-accused of an agreement not to harm one guard. The Court found conspiracy existed, as the accused acted in coordination from unlocking cells to attacking guards, making each conspirator responsible for all acts done in furtherance thereof. The claim of appellants Pamintuan and Pilapil that their status as trustees made it unlikely for them to participate was irrelevant once their direct participation was proven. The trial court erred in designating the crime as “Robbery with Homicide and Serious Physical Injuries” and in imposing “life imprisonment.” Under Article 294 of the Revised Penal Code, the offense is Robbery with Homicide, which absorbs the physical injuries, and the proper penalty is reclusion perpetua, not life imprisonment. The judgment was thus AFFIRMED with MODIFICATION to reclusion perpetua and the offense designated as Robbery with Homicide.