Baretto, Pao People vs. Dela Peña G.
R 219581
FACTS:
On or about the 24th day of September 2005, the accused, conspiring, confederating, and
mutually helping one another, with deliberate intent to gain, by means of force and
intimidation, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously take and carry away
the following items, Appellant pleaded not guilty to the crime charged.
On September 24, 2005; at around 1:00 a.m., Julita Nacoboan (Julita), her husband, Jose
Nacoboan (Jose), and their son, Marwin Nacoboan (Marwin) were about to board their pump
boat loaded with 13 sacks of copra. These sacks of copra were supposed to be loaded and
transferred to a bigger passenger boat.
As the Nacoboan's pump boat was about to depart, a smaller boat suddenly blocked its path. For
fear of collision, Jose stopped the engine of their pump boat Three armed men then immediately
ordered the pump boat. One of the armed men pointed a firearm at Jose arid ordered him to
proceed to the aft or the rear side of the boat. Julita identified him as the appellant. Jose's hands
were tied and his head covered.Another armed person grabbed Julita’s bag and took the some
items.Another person operated the pump boat and docked it on a small island after nearly two
hours of travel.
Version of the Defense
Appellant denied the accusa6on against him and testified that he was a resident of Brgy. San
Roque, Villareal, Samar for 15 years. He claimed that from September 2005 up to December 5,
2005 he was fishing.
The RTC and CA rendered judgment finding appellant guilty of piracy under PD No 532.
Issue
WON appellant is guilty of piracy.
Ruling
Section 2(d) of PD 532 defines piracy as follows:
Any attack upon or seizure of any vessel, or the taking away of the whole or part thereof or
its cargo, equipment, or the personal belongings of its complement or pa5sengers,
irrespective of the value thereof, by means of violence against or intimidation of persons
or force upon things, committed by any person, including a passenger or member of the
complement of said vessel, in Philippine waters shall be considered as piracy.
The Information categorically alleged that the incident happened along the river bank of Brgy.
San Roque, Municipality of Villareal, Province of Samar. Under Section 2(a) of PD 532,
"Philippine waters''' is defined as follows:
From this definition, it is clear that a river is considered part of Philippine waters.
The Information also clearly alleged that the vessel's cargo, equipment, and personal belongings
of the passengers were taken by the appellant and his armed companions.The Information also
stated that the vessel's equipment which consisted of the engine, propeller tube, and tools were
taken and carried away by the appellant. Furthermore, the Information also stated that the
personal belongings of the passengers.
From the foregoing, the Court finds that the prosecution was able to establish that the victims'
pump boat was in Philippine waters when appellant and his armed companions boarded the same
and seized its cargo, equipment, and the personal belongings of the passengers.
The Court finds no reason to doubt the testimony of Julita identifying appellant as one of the
assailants who boarded their vessel and seized its cargo, equipment, and the passengers' personal
belongings. Julita testified that she was able to identify appellant because of the moonlight that
illuminated the area. Further, she testified that she then had a flashlight that allowed her to see
who boarded the vessel. More importantly, Juljta had known the appellant for 16 years since they
reside in the same barangay.
Appellant's bare denial and alibi cannot prevail over the positive identification made by Julita.
"Time and again, this Court has consistently ruled that positive identification prevails over alibi
since the latter can easily be fabricated and is inherently unreliable."
