G.R. No. 149893 - PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, VS. MELCHOR RABAGO, ACCUSED-.DECISION - Supreme Court E-Library

Ruling

WHEREFORE, in view of the foregoing, the court finds accused, Melchor Rabago GUILTY beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of rape as defined by Article 266-A and penalized by Article 266-B of the Revised Penal Code in relation to Republic Act 8353 and he is hereby sentenced to suffer the mandatory penalty of DEATH. The accused is further ordered to pay the victim, AAA, the sum of P 50,000.00 as moral damages, P 75,000.00 as civil indemnity and P 50,000.00 as exemplary damages. [2] On March 30, 1999, appellant was charged under an information which states: That on the 13 th day of January, 1999, at about 7:00 oclock in the evening, at Sitio Lubas , Barangay Camp 7 , Municipality of Minglanilla , Province of Cebu, Philippines, and within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, the above-named accused, with lewd design and by means of force and intimidation, did then and there willfully, unlawfully and feloniously lie and succeed in having carnal knowledge with his own daughter AAA, a minor who is only thirteen (13) years old, against her will and consent. CONTRARY TO LAW. [3] Upon his arraignment on July 13, 1999, [4] appellant, assisted by his counsel, Atty. Anacleto Debalucos, pleaded not guilty. After trial, the court a quo rendered the assailed decision. The testimonies of three witnesses for the prosecution, namely the complainant AAA, her mother Esterlita Rabago , and Dr. Daphne Rana, were presented to establish the following facts: AAA is the only daughter among the eight children of appellant Melchor Rabago and Esterlita Rabago . [5] On the date of the alleged rape, she was residing with her family in Lubas II, Campo 7, Minglanilla , Cebu. [6] On January 13, 1999, at around 9:00 p.m., while sleeping on the floor of their house with her 4-month old brother, the complainant was awakened when appellant covered her mouth with his hands, undressed her, and took off her panty. Appellant touched her body starting from the neck, left breast, stomach area, going downwards to her thighs. Appellant, already naked then, rubbed his penis on the complainants vagina. He raised her right leg and thereafter made a push-and-pull movement, with his penis inside her vagina. [7] The complainant struggled and tried to extricate herself, but appellant proved too strong for her. [8] She felt pain and noticed that blood dripped from her. [9] When appellant was through, he left to change. Upon returning, he threatened the complainant with a knife, telling her that he would kill her mother and her brothers if she reports to her mother what happened. [10] On January 22, 1999, eight days after the incident, the complainant eventually told her mother what happened. [11] They immediately reported the occurrence to the Office of the Barangay Captain, which then reported the same to the police. [12] The next day, AAA was examined by Dr. Nueva Tagaloguin, Medico-Legal Officer of Don Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center. The Medical Report indicated a healed laceration i