G.R. No. L-3022; March 22, 1950
THE PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. PEDRO CABASA and IGNACIO AJOS, defendants-appellants.

FACTS

On October 22, 1944, appellants Ignacio Ajos, Gil Castillo, and Luis Dugcoy, all armed and members of a guerrilla unit under appellant Pedro Cabasa, took Aurelio Saavedra from his house. Saavedra was later shot and killed by Ajos. The prosecution’s theory, based primarily on the testimony of Gil Castillo, was that Cabasa ordered Ajos to kill Saavedra at a specific sitio. The defense claimed the order was only to arrest Saavedra for alleged collaboration with the Japanese and that Ajos shot him only when Saavedra allegedly attempted to grab a weapon and flee. The trial court found the testimony of Castillo credible, noting that Saavedra’s hands were bound, making an escape attempt implausible, and that the killing occurred shortly after Cabasa’s romantic advances toward Saavedra’s common-law wife were rejected.

ISSUE

Whether the appellants are guilty of murder.

RULING

Yes. The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction but modified the penalties. The crime is murder qualified by treachery. The Court found the prosecution’s version credible, establishing that Cabasa ordered the killing and Ajos executed it. No mitigating or aggravating circumstances attended Cabasa’s liability. For Ajos, the Court recognized the mitigating circumstance of having acted upon an order from a superior (Cabasa) for which no moral justification was shown, with no aggravating circumstance to offset it. Cabasa was sentenced to reclusion perpetua with accessories. Ajos was sentenced to an indeterminate penalty of 12 years and 1 day to 20 years of reclusion temporal. Both were ordered to jointly and severally indemnify the heirs of the deceased.

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