[24] This was categorically denied by the Supreme Court as Justice Carpio had in fact recused himself from the case and was not going to take part in the deliberation. [9] They were acquitted by a trial judge in September 1993 for insufficient evidence.[9]. In rejecting questions to Alejos credibility, the SC affirmed the CAs ruling that the credible testimony of a lone witness(es) assumes more weight when there is no showing that he was actuated by improper motive to testify falsely against the accused, as in the case of Freddie Alejo. Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer & other 70+ titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am & share articles on social media. 1 newspaper in terms of circulation and readership. A lying witness can make as positive an identification as a truthful witness can. Policewoman Diaz even insulted Allan, saying he had no right to file the attempted rape complaint on behalf of the girl, because he was only the stepfather. Another accused, Joey Filart also fled to the United States. De Lima said it was possible that it was Black Maria who was in the Vizconde home and not Jessica Alfaro, the NBI's star witness during the trial. The tapes were restored by IBM while being monitored by the National Computer Center. On the acquittal of Lorenzo delos Santos, the accused whom Alejo had also positively identified, it ruled that his acquittal did not damage Alejos credibility; and his positive identification of the accused. As a result, the court reverses the decision of the Court of Appeals, and acquits Webb, et al. Three days after that, he was allegedly approached by Mrs. Webb who reportedly told him, You did not see anything. A week after, Sen. Freddie Webb allegedly told him, You did not see anything. Like Alejo, Herbas also at first instance identified Joel de Jesus as one of the gunmen during a police line-up but later withdraw his statement in open court. [6][7][8] The suspects said they were tortured and forced to confess to the crime before they were presented by Filart to the media. Two of the accused have also been acquitted by the RTC on the basis of their defence of alibis. One of the justices, Roberto Abad, who dissented the majority decision affirming the guilty verdict wrote: the public prosecutor chose instead to allow the Abadillas, who had an interest in Alejos testimony, to make him dependent on them for his livelihood at least for the duration of the trial of the case. [29], The court said that "among the accused, Webb presented the strongest alibi". The SC required this test as necessary before a testimony of positive identification could be accepted as credible and with merit. The details of how they were killed were grim. Eh di sana may sweldo ako. He also ordered the Secretary of Justice Leila de Lima to study the possibility of giving compensation to Webb and others. MANILA, Philippines - A former policeman who was jailed for allegedly tampering with evidence in the 1991 Vizconde massacre insists he is innocent of any crime after being released from prison Tuesday. They are Lenido Lumanog, Augusto Santos, Senior Police Officer 2 (SPO2) Cesar Fortuna, Rameses de Jesus and Joel de Jesus. [12] (Under Philippine law, generally, alibi is the weakest defense, especially where there is direct testimony of an eyewitness, duly corroborated by another. She took advantage of her familiarity with these details to include in her testimony. The court ruled that Alfaro was "a stool pigeon, one who earned her living by fraternizing with criminals so she could squeal on them to her NBI handlers." This is a violation of the duty of state." But Custodio admits this may be easier said than done. And while justice seems elusive, life must go on, Vizcondes grandniece Katherine Asuncion said, reading from a family statement. However, keep in mind not to be vindictive. In their alibis, Joel de Jesus claimed he was driving his passenger tricycle in Fairview, Quezon City the whole day; for SPO2 Cesar Fortuna, he was at Camp Crame (headquarters of the Philippine National Police, PNP) for official business and his presence was also corroborated by two police officials whom he had transacted business with; for Augusto Santos, he was at the Jose Fabella Hospital in Sta. Many of the stories in my columns in previous newspapers were complaints from citizens. The readers will notice soon enough the brevity of each topic. Firstly, the SC held Alfaro was not a credible witness. It strictly laid down these as the least requirement in evaluating the credibility of the claim of positive identification. In a 38-page strongly-worded decision promulgated on Tuesday, the . But in the Abadilla case, the relatives and friends are not an impartial witness to corroborate the defence of alibi of the accused. Don't miss out on the latest news and information. When she could not produce the person, Sacaguing continued to press her saying that she might as well assume the role of her informant.. [10] According to the footage of the trial, Alfaro had been able to identify all the defendants by their names. [50], On January 18, 2011, the Supreme Court denied Lauro Vizconde's motion to reverse the acquittal because of double jeopardy. Former Paraaque City cop Gerardo Biong walked free from the New Bilibid Prisons (NBP) in Muntinlupa City after serving a 12-year sentence. Rodolfo Sison, the police investigator originally assigned to the case in 1991. The story of the Vizconde Massacre wasn't just a single story; it varied as told by a number of witnesses. [2][20], The court ruled that the Paraaque RTC was correct in sentencing Webb et al. The lower courts, however, reasoned that "Webb's alibi cannot stand against Alfaro's positive identification of him." Sulu in the eyes of my good friend Princess Jacel Kiram is a potential eco-tourism destination and fruit basket of the country. ", Jessica Alfaro: Alfaro's e-mail from abroad read. The other defendants were Antonio Lejano II, Hospicio Fernandez, Michael Gatchalian, Miguel Rodriguez, Peter Estrada, Joey Filart and Artemio Ventura. [165] The discrepancies between a sworn statement and testimony in court do not outrightly justify the acquittal of an accused,[166] as testimonial evidence carries more weight than an affidavit. After reading about how responsive Secretary Benhur Abalos is to matters raised by the media, some members of the PNP, particularly in the province of Iloilo, have shared through channels about their operational Local producers wont like it, but it looks like in the near future, there will be a flood of imported agricultural commodities. Eleazar, a strict disciplinarian, is probably the only PNP chief who is loved and respected by the citizenry. Her mother, Estrellita, 47, and sister, Jennifer, 7, were also killed. Credibility of a witness: In Vizconde case not credible, but credible in the Abadilla case. X' key to real perpetrators of Vizconde murders? 176864 People of the Philippines vs. Hubert Webb, et. . Among the defense witnesses was Artemio Sacaguing, a former, now deceased NBI official who testified that Alfaro was an NBI asset who only volunteered to assume the role of the eyewitness when she could not produce the actual witness to the Vizconde killings. No. However, the court pointed out that while Webb or his parents may be able to "arrange for the local immigration to put a March 9, 1991 departure stamp on his passport and an October 27, 1992 arrival stamp", they could not fix a foreign airlines passenger manifest, and the U.S. Immigration's record system. Lauro Vizconde: "Is there still anyone among you who doubts that there is rampant corruption in our government? Based on the infamous and seemingly never ending 1991 Vizconde murder case in the Philippines where a woman and her two children; a teen daughter who was also raped and a 6-year-old, were all viciously stabbed to death while the husband was away in America on business. White, on the other hand, said he saw the three cars enter the subdivision on the night of June 29, as Alfaro had testified; White also testified that policeman Gerardo Biong was the first to arrive at the crime scene. After 15 years behind bars, Hubert Webb and 5 others in the Vizconde massacre case (Manila-Philippines) were released from prison on Tuesday. ), Among evidence that was not admitted by Judge Tolentino, was the note verbale from the United States Embassy in Manila claiming that Webb entered the United States in March 1991 and left in October 1992. 185123/G.R. During the trial, accused Webb made a defence of alibi claiming that he was in the United States when the massacre of the Vizcondes happened. Envy aliens who can avoid PH; pity Pinoys who are stuck here. There was entry of (former senator) Freddie Webb leaving the country in March 1991 but no Hubert Webb, De Lima said. The Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption(VACC) asked Justice Antonio Carpio and his cousin Justice Conchita Carpio-Morales to take a leave while the case is being decided to avoid undue influence on the court's decision. "I doubt that at this time, physical evidence will be available because a lapse of time has taken place, but that's the only way we can find the true killers." Run after Alfaro Philstar.com is one of the most vibrant, opinionated, discerning communities of readers on cyberspace. Defence of Alibi: In Vizconde case not admissible, in Abadilla case court acted on conjectures. Lejano and Ventura also took turns raping Carmela, before finishing her off with numerous stabs. I will continue to play that role as long as I live. [2][3] Estrellita Vizconde, 49, suffered thirteen stab wounds; Carmela Vizconde, 19, suffered seventeen stab wounds and had been raped before she was killed; and Anne Marie Jennifer, 6, had nineteen stab wounds. But in the Abadilla case, not only did the SC affird the CAs ruling in rejecting the defence of alibi, it did not also question the CAs formulation of conjectures on which it based its judgement. InAbadilla case: The SC admitted the positive identification of witness Freddie Alejo when it considered him a credible witness. 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The Vizconde massacre, dubbed the crime of the 20th century, was my defining moment as a columnist and defender of the oppressed and those wrongfully accused. Nephews had posted a banner declaring Truth prevails 20 years after and demanding Final justice for the Vizconde massacre victims, in apparent reference to government probers claims that, contrary to his alibi, released murder convict Hubert Webb never left the country. 182555/G.R. Kaya laban lang tayo. [2] Lauro Vizconde, Estrellita's husband and the father of Carmela and Jennifer, was in the United States on business when the murders took place. From there she allegedly saw Lejano and Ventura take a knife from the kitchen drawer, while the rest of the gang acted as lookouts. In the said stockroom, there is a small door going to Hubert's room and in that door there is a small opening where she used to see Hubert and his friends sniffing on something. Reporters jostled with Vizcondes relatives and friends in his garage, where Fr. Six months is not enough for him to clean up the Aegean stable that is the PNP. CONCLUSION: The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is deeply concerned by this unequal application of jurisprudence by the SC on the Abadilla murder and the Vizconde massacre. The politician would only be allowed by the spouse to run if the party that this politician will join can come up with a big amount for their family. It was hard to tell which made up the truth and the lies. Tolentino also found it hard to believe that Webb was working with a pesticide company because he was asthmatic and allergic to various substances. The term dirty politics is appropriate for that kind of set-up. There was only one vital witness for the prosecution, Freddie Alejo. [4] In the Trial Court (People of the Philippines vs. Hubert Webb, et al., G.R. Indeed, the testimony of a single witness, when positive and credible, is sufficient to support a conviction even for murder. Guillermo Lorenzo Guilor Eleazar, recently appointed chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP), bows out on Nov. 13 this year when he reaches the mandatory retirement age of 56. Villarama noted that the alleged Passport, Passenger Manifest of United Airlines Flight and United Airline ticket of accused Webb offered in evidence were mere photocopies of an alleged original, which were never presented. Secondly, in the Abadilla case the SC held that the defense of alibi is weak, but in the Vizconde case it held that not all denials and alibis should be regarded as fabricated. Powered by, Appendix: Case analysis: Supreme Courts rulings on Vizconde and Abadilla cases are contradictory, http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2010/december2010/176389.htm, http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2010/september2010/182555.htm, http://campaigns.ahrchk.net/abadilla5/docs/A5-FinalAppealPetition.pdf, http://campaigns.ahrchk.net/abadilla5/docs/A5-CAdecision.pdf. Published July 4, 2011 7:24pm. The lead suspect was Hubert Webb whose father, Freddie Webb was famous as an actor, former basketball player, and Paraaque congressman at the time of the murders. Thus, her testimony could not be admitted. All of these had been applied in acquitting the accused in the Vizconde case, which is contradictory to its earlier decision affirming the conviction of the Abadilla Five. No. I did that hoping to make them have second thoughts about doing so,.There is no justice in the Philippines. "[29], The court maintained that for a person to be convicted there should not be "a reasonable, lingering doubt as to his guilt." The AHRC urges the SC to thoroughly review the pending final appeal of the accused in the Abadilla case. Apart from Alejo, earlier there was another witness, Merlito Herbas. The 3 sets of suspects are: the Barroso Akyat-Bahay gang; the group of construction workers with engineer Danilo Agwas tagged as mastermind; SPO3 Angel Viaje, PO3 Rodolfo Colado, Ruben Pineda; and, the group of Hubert Webb. Let the love of God prevail. I incurred the ire of the citizenry, including some of my fellow columnists in theInquirer,for my defense of Hubert. LYN RILLON. Sacaguing broke the guidelines in taking affidavits from witnesses. But Villaramas opinion was not considered by the SC in their majority decision. 124871, May 13, 2004. No two persons have the same DNA fingerprint, with the exception of identical twins. A second movie, The Untold Story: Vizconde Massacre II, was released in 1994. VIZCONDE MASSACRE CASE: This case is about the gang rape and murder of a 19-year-old woman, the murder of her 7-year-old sister and their mother on June 30, 1991 at their home in Paranaque City, Metro Manila. Justo Cabanacan, the security supervisor of the gated community, said that he saw Webb enter the gated community, although he did not record Webb entering in his log book. It cautioned itself from accepting the testimonies of witnesses without applying these tests. Pitong, an electrician who since 1982, already knew the Webb family claimed he saw a laundry woman wash a bloodied T-shirt on the morning of the crime. No. Their claims were corroborated by witnesses who are disinterested parties, their relatives and friends and documentary evidence. But, unlike the house robbers, however the court points out that "Webb and his friends did not have anything to do in a darkened garage. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Vizconde said he was optimistic about finding more witnesses.. As a host of the program that carries my surname, I and my all-female staff have handled complaints from citizens, concerning abusive or arrogant policemen and other government functionaries. Allan (surname intentionally omitted), stepfather of a 16-year-old girl who was nearly raped by a neighbor, went with his daughter to the police station in San Jose, Batangas recently to file a complaint. The Supreme Court acquitted them on Dec. 14, 2010. For almost two decades, Filipinos have been mystified by the brutal 1991 killing of a mother and her two daughters. While washing Hubert Webb's clothing, Gaviola said she noticed fresh bloodstains on his shirt. She had been hanging around that agency for sometime as a stool pigeon, one paid for mixing up with criminals and squealing on them. . Vizconde Massacre: The hidden Truth. This page was last edited on 8 February 2023, at 03:37. I also updated them on the new twist in the investigation. starring Kris Aquino as Carmela Vizconde. Alejo had been under the Abadillas custody and protection instead of that of the WPP of the government. The SC, however, held that by failing to prove the existence of a relationship between Hubert and Carmela; and that the lover that Alfaro claimed that Carmela had met did not come forward in public or in court, her testimonies about the accused and the victims were like a piece of jigsaw puzzle trimmed to fit into the shape on the board but does not belong because it clashes with the surrounding pieces and the lover was a mere ghost of the imagination of Alfaro, the woman who made a living informing on criminals. The Vizconde massacre made headlines in the Philippines in the '90s and started a trend in filmmaking. People cried for justice for the Vizcondes and one of the suspects was Hubert Webb, son of then Paraaque congressman Freddie Webb, who later became a senator. He then hurled the little girl to a wall and started stabbing her. On SPO2 Cesar Fortuna, the RTC, the CA and the SC, accepted the fact that he was at Camp Crame, but the SC affirmed the RTC and the CAs conjecture that it was not impossible for him to have gone to Katipunan road, Blue Ridge, which is relatively near Camp Crame when the shooting happened around 8.40 in the morning. This contradicted Hubert Webb's claim that he was in the United States from March 9, 1991, to October 27, 1992. On August 11, 1999, the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City acquitted two of them and convicted the five others, now collectively known as the Abadilla Five. I got involved in the case after Webb told me Hubert, whose name was slowly cropping up in news reports as a prime suspect, was in the United States when the dastardly crime happened. I became a villain in the eyes of the citizenry that was crying for blood; but I was steadfast. Episode on July 5, 2011 Tuesday after Saksi! For those who havent heard aboutIsumbong, the public service program started at Radyo Veritas on June 1, 1991. Conjectures and suspicions are not facts, hence, they have no evidentiary value. Be consoled that the truth will always come out, Hernandez advised Vizconde. Tel: +(852) 2698 6339 On June 30, 1991, 47-year-old housewife Estrellita Vizconde and daughters Carmela, 18, and Jennifer, 7, were found dead in their residence in BF Homes in Paraaque. She cited the testimony of Alex del Toro, husband of Webb's relative, who said he hired Hubert Webb as an employee at his pesticide company in California. The unconstitutionality of prior restraint. Massacre case in 1991 Webb was accused of raping Carmela Vizconde, 18, who was killed in her family's Paraaque home on June 30, 1991. Former Paraaque policeman Gerardo Biong was found guilty as an accessory for burning bedsheets and tampering with other evidence in the crime. I found this As of yesterday, police had arrested and filed criminal charges against six fraternity members suspected to have beaten to death John Matthew Salilig in a twisted concept ofbrotherhood. You will regret it.[58][59] Jack, a village security guard who kept records of the village where Webb lived said he saw Hubert Webb during the time of the massacre. The CA held that these ballistic results are inconclusive and can never prevail over appellants positive identification by eyewitness Freddie Alejo. Cabanacan said Webb had entered the subdivision (where the Vizconde house was located) a few days before the massacre and that he even identified himself as the son of then Congressman Webb. In open court, he already said there were six, not four assailants; that it was two other gunmen, not one of the four present close to the car who pointed the gun at him; and he was not nervous but rather had the opportunity to see the faces of all the assailants facing him all at the same time. De Lima said the evidence that showed Webb and any of the co-accused were in the country came from the magnetic reel tape (MRT) of the Philippine Bureau of Immigration (BI) where all records of incoming and outgoing passengers from the Philippines are recorded. Alfaro could not possibly prove the relationship between Hubert and Carmela, as they were strangers to each other, and Alfaro also could not have possibly identified the other accused because all of them were strangers to her. This has resulted in the revelation by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) that they no longer had the specimens as these were remanded to the Paraaque courts. According to Rivera, Sacaguing was never part of the NBI team assigned to investigate the Vizconde massacre and that his former colleague took Alfaro's statement in April 1995 without the presence of a lawyer. a contribution to Human Rights work, Asian Human Rights Commission He said that he heard Hubert Webb quarreling with another young looking customer. InAbadilla case: The SC affirmed the CAs judgement as inconclusive the use of forensic evidence, for example, the fingerprints and ballistic test results, showing that none of the five accused had their fingerprints match to those extracted from the murder victims car. [29], The court also held that the testimony of the Webb's maid, Mila Gaviola, was also unreliable since she was not able to distinguish if it was Hubert whom she saw on June 30, 1991, nor "did she remember any of the details that happened in the household on the other days". She also said that Bing was accosting Ging Rodriguez on why he had to stab and kill a young girl. Herbas had testified for the defence instead of the prosecution when the Abadilla did not fulfil his promise to give him (Herbas) exactly the same salary he was receiving and when he was told that he would no longer be presented as witness because the testimony of Alejo would be sufficient. Former NBI official Pedro Rivera however dismissed as lies the testimony of Sacaguing saying that Agent Sacaguing had a record of notoriety in the NBI which prompted his transfer to remote places of assignment until his early retirement. It is time to heal the past. December 14, 2010:http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2010/december2010/176389.htm No. I would not have ended up like this if you had not neglected me). For there is no law requiring that the testimony of a simple [sic] witness should be corroborated for it to be accorded full faith and credit. Massacre era. Methinks one year would give Eleazar ample time impose his brand of discipline on one of the most undisciplined police forces in the world. This was how Lauro Vizcondes relatives summed it up on Thursday night after a Mass marking the 20th anniversary of the death of his wife Estrellita and daughters Carmela and Jennifer. The court also amended the award of damages from 100,000 pesos to 200,000 pesos, and also upheld the conviction of Biong as accessory to the crime "by abusing his public functions to conceal and destroy the physical evidence in order to prevent the discovery of the crime and by allowing the destruction of the physical evidence, Biong facilitated the escape of the principal accused. For example, the prosecutor, instead of admitting Alejo to the WPP during trial, rather chose instead to allow the Abadillas, who had an interest in Alejos testimony, to make him dependent on them for his livelihood at least for the duration of the trial of the case. Equal protection of the law is fundamental in the countrys Constitution. You are just a few clicks away from making The Vizconde murders remained unsolved for almost four years, until 1995 when eyewitness Jessica Alfaro, a self-confessed drug addict, came forward on April 28, 1995, to shed light on the massacre. True Crime. 132577 People of the Philippines vs. Hubert Jeffrey P. Webb, 1999, G.R. Sources from the Department of Justice said Webb, who was acquitted by the Supreme Court last December, 2010, was in the country during and after the crime happened in . [25][26], On December 14, 2010, the Supreme Court reversed the earlier judgment of the lower court and Court of Appeals and acquitted seven of the nine accused, including Hubert Webb, finding that the prosecution failed to prove that the accused were guilty beyond reasonable doubt. The court also said the same for the issue of the garage light: she claimed that Ventura climbed the car's hood, using a chair, to turn the light off. [2] Two of the accused remain fugitives from the law: Joey Filart and Artemio Ventura. [57] The witnesses include an electrician, a drug dealer, a couple of neighborhood basketball players, a hairdresser and a village security guard. Nephews had posted a banner declaring "Truth prevails 20 years after" and demanding "Final justice for the Vizconde massacre victims," in apparent reference to government probers' claims . On the night of June 29, 1991, Asuncion was supposed to have a sleepover with Jennifer at the latters home in Paraaque City. This coincided with his passport and Philippine Immigration records but were dismissed by Tolentino due to belief that these documents can possibly be falsified. Hubert and his co-accused were convicted by the Paraaque Regional Trial Court for the crime on June 6, 2000. Needless to say, were unpopular with the PNP and other government agencies that citizens transact business with. We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. It was Alejo who had positively identified Joel and Lorenzo (delos Santos) during a police line-up. The SC rendered its judgment on the Abadilla case on September 7 and on the Vizconde case on December 14 of this year [2010]. The Vizconde murder case, colloquially known as the Vizconde massacre, was the multiple homicide of members of the Vizconde family on June 30, 1991 at their residence at 80 Vinzons Street, BF Homes, Paraaque, Metro Manila, Philippines. Aug 5, 2008. The defense questioned Alfaro's credibility noting that she admitted to being under the influence of drugs when she allegedly witnessed the crime and had made inconsistent statements on her two affidavits. But Justice Conchita Carpio Morales, who concurred with the decision, wrote strongly against basing judgement on conjectures: Facts decide cases.
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