C-8: Arson & Other Crimes Involving Destructions [Art.
320-326]
Chapter Eight
ARSON AND OTHER CRIMES INVOLVING DESTRUCTIONS
Art. 320. Destructive arson. — The penalty of reclusion temporal in its
maximum period to reclusion perpetua shall be imposed upon any person
who shall burn:
1. Any arsenal, shipyard, storehouse or military powder or fireworks
factory, ordinance, storehouse, archives or general museum of the
Government.
2. Any passenger train or motor vehicle in motion or vessel out of port.
3. In an inhabited place, any storehouse or factory of inflammable or
explosive materials.
Art. 321. Other forms of arson. — When the arson consists in the burning of
other property and under the circumstances given hereunder, the offender
shall be punishable:
1. By reclusion temporal or reclusion perpetua:
(a) if the offender shall set fire to any building, farmhouse, warehouse, hut,
shelter, or vessel in port, knowing it to be occupied at the time by one or
more persons;
(b) If the building burned is a public building and value of the damage
caused exceeds 6,000 pesos;
(c) If the building burned is a public building and the purpose is to destroy
evidence kept therein to be used in instituting prosecution for the
punishment of violators of the law, irrespective of the amount of the
damage;
(d) If the building burned is a public building and the purpose is to destroy
evidence kept therein to be used in legislative, judicial or administrative
proceedings, irrespective of the amount of the damage; Provided, however,
That if the evidence destroyed is to be used against the defendant for the
prosecution of any crime punishable under existing laws, the penalty shall
be reclusion perpetua;
(e) If the arson shall have been committed with the intention of collecting
under an insurance policy against loss or damage by fire.
2. By reclusion temporal:
(a) If an inhabited house or any other building in which people are
accustomed to meet is set on fire, and the culprit did not know that such
house or building was occupied at the time, or if he shall set fire to a
moving freight train or motor vehicle, and the value of the damage caused
exceeds 6,000 pesos;
(b) If the value of the damage caused in paragraph (b) of the preceding
subdivision does not exceed 6,000 pesos;
(c) If a farm, sugar mill, cane mill, mill central, bamboo groves or any
similar plantation is set on fire and the damage caused exceeds 6,000
pesos; and
(d) If grain fields, pasture lands, or forests, or plantings are set on fire, and
the damage caused exceeds 6,000 pesos.
3. By prision mayor:
(a) If the value of the damage caused in the case mentioned in paragraphs
(a), (c), and (d) in the next preceding subdivision does not exceed 6,000
pesos;
(b) If a building not used as a dwelling or place of assembly, located in a
populated place, is set on fire, and the damage caused exceeds 6,000 pesos;
4. By prision correccional in its maximum period to prision mayor in its
medium period:
(a) If a building used as dwelling located in an uninhabited place is set on
fire and the damage caused exceeds 1,000 pesos;
(b) If the value or the damage caused in the case mentioned in paragraphs
(c) and (d) of subdivision 2 of this article does not exceed 200 pesos.
5. By prision correccional in its medium period to prision mayor in its
minimum period, when the damage caused is over 200 pesos but does not
exceed 1,000 pesos, and the property referred to in paragraph (a) of the
preceding subdivision is set on fire; but when the value of such property
does not exceed 200 pesos, the penalty next lower in degree than that
prescribed in this subdivision shall be imposed.
6. The penalty of prision correccional in its medium and maximum periods,
if the damage caused in the case mentioned in paragraph (b) of subdivision
3 of this article does not exceed 6,000 pesos but is over 200 pesos.
7. The penalty of prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods,
if the damage caused in the case mentioned paragraph (b) subdivision 3 of
this article does not exceed 200 pesos.
8. The penalty of arresto mayor and a fine ranging from fifty to one
hundred per centum if the damage caused shall be imposed, when the
property burned consists of grain fields, pasture lands, forests, or
plantations when the value of such property does not exceed 200 pesos. (As
amended by R.A. 5467, approved May 12, 1969).
Art. 322. Cases of arson not included in the preceding articles. — Cases of
arson not included in the next preceding articles shall be punished:
1. By arresto mayor in its medium and maximum periods, when the damage
caused does not exceed 50 pesos;
2. By arresto mayor in its maximum period to prision correccional in its
minimum period, when the damage caused is over 50 pesos but does not
exceed 200 pesos;
3. By prision correccional in its minimum and medium periods, if the
damage caused is over 200 pesos but does not exceed 1,000 pesos; and
4. By prision correccional in its medium and maximum periods, if it is over
1,000 pesos.
Art. 323. Arson of property of small value. — The arson of any uninhabited
hut, storehouse, barn, shed, or any other property the value of which does
not exceed 25 pesos, committed at a time or under circumstances which
clearly exclude all danger of the fire spreading, shall not be punished by the
penalties respectively prescribed in this chapter, but in accordance with the
damage caused and under the provisions of the following chapter.
Art. 324. Crimes involving destruction. — Any person who shall cause
destruction by means of explosion, discharge of electric current,
inundation, sinking or stranding of a vessel, intentional damaging of the
engine of said vessel, taking up the rails from a railway track, maliciously
changing railway signals for the safety of moving trains, destroying
telegraph wires and telegraph posts, or those of any other system, and, in
general, by using any other agency or means of destruction as effective as
those above enumerated, shall be punished by reclusion temporal if the
commission has endangered the safety of any person, otherwise, the
penalty of prision mayor shall be imposed.
Art. 325. Burning one’s own property as means to commit arson. — Any
person guilty of arson or causing great destruction of the property
belonging to another shall suffer the penalties prescribed in this chapter,
even though he shall have set fire to or destroyed his own property for the
purposes of committing the crime.
Art. 326. Setting fire to property exclusively owned by the offender. — If the
property burned shall be the exclusive property of the offender, he shall be
punished by arresto mayor in its maximum period to prision correccional in
its minimum period, if the arson shall have been committed for the purpose
of defrauding or causing damage to another, or prejudice shall actually have
been caused, or if the thing burned shall have been a building in an
inhabited place.
Art. 326-A. In cases where death resulted as a consequence of arson. — If
death resulted as a consequence of arson committed on any of the
properties and under any of the circumstances mentioned in the preceding
articles, the court shall impose the death penalty.
Art. 326-B. Prima facie evidence of arson. — Any of the following
circumstances shall constitute prima facie evidence of arson:
1. If after the fire, are found materials or substances soaked in gasoline,
kerosene, petroleum, or other inflammables, or any mechanical, electrical
chemical or traces or any of the foregoing.
2. That substantial amount of inflammable substance or materials were
stored within the building not necessary in the course of the defendant’s
business; and
3. That the fire started simultaneously in more than one part of the building
or locale under circumstances that cannot normally be due to accidental or
unintentional causes: Provided, however, That at least one of the following
is present in any of the three above-mentioned circumstances:
(a) That the total insurance carried on the building and/or goods is more
than 80 per cent of the value of such building and/or goods at the time of
the fire;
(b) That the defendant after the fire has presented a fraudulent claim for
loss.
The penalty of prision correccional shall be imposed on one who plants the
articles above-mentioned, in order to secure a conviction, or as a means of
extortion or coercion. (As amended by R.A. 5467, approved May 12, 1969).
see below for
PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 1613
AMENDING THE LAW ON ARSON
see below for
PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 1744
AMENDING ARTICLE THREE HUNDRED AND TWENTY OF
THE REVISED PENAL CODE PROVISIONS ON ARSON
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Tagged as Arson, Crimes Involving Destructions
MARCH 16, 2010 · 11:56 AM
P.D. 1613: Arson
PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 1613
AMENDING THE LAW ON ARSON
WHEREAS, findings of the police and intelligence agencies of the
government reveal that fires and other crimes involving destruction in
Metro Manila and other urban centers in the country are being perpetuated
by criminal syndicates, some of which have foreign connections;
WHEREAS, the current law on arson suffer from certain inadequacies that
impede the successful enforcement and prosecution of arsonists;
WHEREAS, it is imperative that the high incidence of fires and other
crimes involving destruction be prevented to protect the national economy
and preserve the social economic and political stability of the country;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the
Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution do
hereby order and decree as part of the law of the land, the following:
Sec. 1. Arson. — Any person who burns or sets fire to the property of
another shall be punished by Prision mayor.
The same penalty shall be imposed when a person sets fire to his own
property under circumstances which expose to danger the life or property
of another.
Sec. 2. Destructive Arson. — The penalty of Reclusion temporal in its
maximum period to Reclusion perpetua shall be imposed if the property
burned is any of the following:
1. Any ammunition factory and other establishment where explosives,
inflammable or combustible materials are stored.
2. Any archive, museum, whether public or private or any edifice devoted to
culture, education or social services.
3. Any church or place or worship or other building where people usually
assemble.
4. Any train, airplane or any aircraft, vessel or watercraft, or conveyance for
transportation of persons or property.
5. Any building where evidence is kept for use in any legislative, judicial,
administrative or other official proceedings.
6. Any hospital, hotel, dormitory, lodging house, housing tenement,
shopping center, public or private market, theater or movie house or any
similar place or building.
7. Any building, whether used as dwelling or not, situated in a populated or
congested area.
Sec. 3. Other Cases of Arson. — The penalty of Reclusion temporal to
Reclusion perpetua shall be imposed if the property burned is any of the
following:
1. Any building used as offices of the government or any of its agencies;
2. Any uninhabited house or dwelling;
3. Any industrial establishment, shipyard, oil well or mine shaft, platform
or tunnel;
4. Any plantation, farm, pastureland, growing crop, grain filed, orchard,
bamboo grove or forest;
5. Any rice mill, cane mill or mill central; and
6. Any railway or bus station, airport, wharf or warehouse.
Sec. 4. Special Aggravating Circumstances in Arson. — The penalty in any
case of arson shall be imposed in its maximum period:
1. If committed with intent to gain;
2. If committed for the benefit of another;
3. If the offender is motivated by spite or hatred towards the owner or
occupant of the property burned;
4. If committed by a syndicate.
The offense is committed by a syndicate if it is planned or carried out by a
group of three (3) or more persons.
Sec. 5. Where Death Results From Arson. — If by reason of or on the
occasion of arson death results, the penalty of Reclusion perpetua to death
shall be imposed.
Sec. 6. Prima Facie Evidence of Arson. — Any of the following
circumstances shall constitute prima facie evidence of arson:
1. If the fire started simultaneously in more than one part of the building or
establishment.
2. If substantial amount of flammable substances or materials are stored
within the building not necessary in the business of the offender nor for
household use.
3. Gasoline, kerosene, petroleum or other flammable or combustible
substances or materials soaked therewith or containers, thereof, or any
mechanical, electrical, chemical, or electronic contrivance designed to start
a fire, or ashes or traces of any of the foregoing are found in the ruins or
premises of the burned building or property.
4. If the building or property is insured for substantially more than its
actual value at the time of the issuance of the policy.
5. If during the lifetime of the corresponding fire insurance policy more
than two fires have occurred in the same or other premises owned or under
the control of the offender and/or insured.
6. If shortly before the fire a substantial portion of the effects insured and
stored in building or property had been withdrawn from the premises
except in the ordinary course of business.
7. If a demand for money or other valuable consideration was made before
the fire in exchange for the desistance of the offender or for the safety of
other person or property of the victim.
Sec. 7. Conspiracy to Commit Arson. — Conspiracy to commit arson shall be
punished by prision mayor in its minimum period.
Sec. 8. Confiscation of Object of Arson. — The building which is the object
of arson including the land on which it is situated shall be confiscated and
escheated to the State, unless the owner thereof can prove that he has no
participation in nor knowledge of such arson despite the exercise of due
diligence on his part.
Sec. 9. Repealing Clause. — The provisions of Articles 320 to 326-B of the
Revised Penal Code and all laws, executive orders, rules and regulations, or
parts thereof, inconsistent with the provisions of this Decree are hereby
repealed or amended accordingly.
Sec. 10. Effectivity. — This Decree shall take effect immediately upon
publication thereof at least once in a newspaper of general circulation.
Done in the City of Manila this 7th day of March nineteen hundred and
seventy nine.
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MARCH 16, 2010 · 11:50 AM
Amending Article 320: Arson
PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 1744
AMENDING ARTICLE THREE HUNDRED AND TWENTY OF
THE REVISED PENAL CODE PROVISIONS ON ARSON
WHEREAS, there have been rampant and wanton burnings of residential
houses, public buildings, markets, hotels and other commercial
establishments;
WHEREAS, to effectively discourage and deter the commission of arson,
and to prevent destruction of properties and protect the lives of innocent
people, it is necessary that the capital punishment be imposed upon
arsonists;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the
Philippines by virtue of the power vested in me by the Constitution, do
hereby order and decree that Article 320, Revised Penal Code be amended:
Sec. 1. Article 320 of the Revised Penal Code shall read as follows:
“Art. 320. Destructive Arson. — The penalty of reclusion temporal in its
maximum period to death shall be imposed upon any person who shall
burn:
1. One (1) or more buildings or edifices, consequent to one single act of
burning or as a result of simultaneous burnings, or committed on several or
different occasions;
2. Any building of public or private ownership, devoted to the public in
general or where people usually gather or congregate for a definite purpose
such as but not limited to official governmental function or business,
private transaction, commerce, trade workshop, meetings and conferences,
or merely incidental to a definite purpose such as but not limited to hotels,
motels, transient dwellings, public conveyance or stops or terminals,
regardless of whether the offender had knowledge that there are persons in
said building or edifice at the time it is set on fire and regardless also of
whether the building is actually inhabited or not.
3. Any train or locomotive, ship or vessel, airship or airplane, devoted to
transportation or conveyance, or for public use, entertainment or leisure.
4. Any building, factory, warehouse installation and any appurtenances
thereto, which are devoted to the service of public utilities.
5. Any building the burning of which is for the purpose of concealing or
destroying evidence of another violation of law, or for the purpose of
concealing bankruptcy or defrauding creditors or to collect from insurance.
Irrespective of the application of the above enumerated qualifying
circumstances, the penalty of death shall likewise be imposed when the
arson is perpetrated or committed by two (2) or more persons or by a group
of persons, regardless of whether their purpose is merely to burn or destroy
the building or the burning merely constitutes an overt act in the
commission or another violation of law.
The penalty of reclusion temporal in its maximum period to death shall also
be imposed upon any person who shall burn:
1. Any arsenal, shipyard, storehouse or military powder or fireworks
factory, ordinance, storehouse, archives or general museum of the
government.
2. In an inhabited place, any storehouse or factory of inflammable or
explosive materials.
If as a consequence of his commission of any of the acts penalized under
this Article, death or injury results, or any valuable documents, equipment,
machineries, apparatus, or other valuable properties were burned or
destroyed, the mandatory penalty of death shall be imposed.”
Sec. 2. Provisions of Articles 320, 321 and 322 of the Revised Penal Code
which are or may be inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed.
Sec. 3. Effectivity. — This Decree shall take effect immediately.
Done in the City of Manila, this 11th day of November, in the year of Our
Lord, nineteen hundred and eighty.
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