The term dirty politics is appropriate for that kind of set-up. 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. Those initially jailed for. This is one of the most controversial and widely publicised massacre cases because of the involvement of the son of a former Philippine . Firstly, the SC held Alfaro was not a credible witness. The Jessica Alfaro Story in 1995 was meanwhile focused on the star witness, portrayed by Alice Dixson. She did not know nor met any of them. He said that he heard Hubert Webb quarreling with another young looking customer. Police assets are often criminals themselves. The RTC, however, acquitted Delos Santos despite being positively identified also by Alejo as one of those who was present at the crime scene. The passing away of Lauro Vizconde a few days ago does not close the sad chapter on the tragedy known as the Vizconde massacre. Webb's reliance on the presumption of regularity of official functions, stressing the fact that the US-INS certifications are official documents, is misplaced. Alfaro testified that as Webb followed Carmela into the dining room, she decided to step outside for a smoke. No. Their original conviction was capital punishment but their sentence was modified to life imprisonment when the death penalty was abolished. 124871, May 13, 2004. Envy aliens who can avoid PH; pity Pinoys who are stuck here. Theyre projecting Digong as a feeble old man still seeking power. [51] On March 18, Hubert Webb filed a lawsuit against Jessica Alfaro for false testimony at the Paraaque Prosecutor's Office. 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. She had been hanging around that agency for sometime as a stool pigeon, one paid for mixing up with criminals and squealing on them. No. A second movie, The Untold Story: Vizconde Massacre II, was released in 1994. 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. Webb was the prime suspect of the infamous homicide that occurred on June 30, 1991. Rodolfo Sison, the police investigator originally assigned to the case in 1991. "[29], The court held that security guard Normal E. White, Jr.'s testimony was unreliable. He was sentenced to eleven years in prison. But I could not work there), Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption chairman. October 1, 1996 Judge Amelita Tolentino of the Paraaque RTC rejected 132 of the defense's 142 pieces of evidence. 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. But her parents did not allow her to go. June 30, 1991 for a bicycle he bought from a store in Orange County, Los Angeles, California. Corona." 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 AHRC urges the SC to thoroughly review the pending final appeal of the accused in the Abadilla case. The majority of the justices also rejected as conjecture the argument of one of the dissenting justices, Martin Villarama Jr., that it would not have been impossible during the interregnum for Webb to travel back to the country and again fly to the US several times considering that the travel time on board an airline from the Philippines to San Francisco, and from San Francisco to the Philippines takes only about twelve (12) to fourteen (14) hours. With your meaningful insights, help shape the stories that can shape the country. The court considered the accused's "lack of interest in having such test done" in which they concluded that the state "cannot be deemed put on reasonable notice that it would be required to produce the semen specimen at some future time".[29]. 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. Like the accused in the Vizconde case and for any other cases for that matter, the accused in the Abadilla murder case also deserve equal protection of the law. Ateneo law professor Alan Paguia: "The order of release is questionable as it appears to be undemocratic. You are just a few clicks away from making 'Ms. Under the law, prosecutors of a murder case are given 20 years from the time it occurred or the time it was discovered to identify suspects and charge them in court. 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. 3. [2] Tolentino said the certificates issued by the US Immigration and Naturalization Service and the Philippine Bureau of Immigration "could have easily been obtained by the powerful Webb family". Call 896 6000. People vs. Bello, G.R. Webb was among the nine people convicted by Paranaque Regional Trial Court Branch 274 Presiding Judge Amelita Tolentino in January 2000 for the killings. [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. [53], Lauro Vizconde, family patriarch and the founding president of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption, died on February 13, 2016, at the age of 77. Copyright 2023. 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. 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. Both the SC and the CA affirmed the RTCs sentence of guilty verdict without applying the test on the credibility of a witness as they did in Vizconde case. References: [2][20], The court ruled that the Paraaque RTC was correct in sentencing Webb et al. Cruz, Manila accompanying his brother-in-law, Jonas Padel Ayhon, whose wife had just given birth; and Rameses de Jesus and Lenido Lumanog had just left Manila for Mabalacat, Pampanga where they stayed until the evening of June 14. The Untold Story: Vizconde Massacre II - May the Lord Be with Us! [139] Against positive evidence, alibi becomes most unsatisfactory. 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. De Lima also said seven new witnesses claimed they saw Webb in the country during the months of April, May and June 1991. 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. [60] De Lima believed Dong Villadolid is the same person as Dong Ventura, one of the co-accused who fled to the US following the massacre. [4] In the Trial Court (People of the Philippines vs. Hubert Webb, et al., G.R. Based on my findings, I defended Hubert in my column and in my radio and TV programs. [46], President Benigno Aquino III ordered the law enforcement agencies to re-investigate the case six months before the prescription period lapses. [13][14], Other prosecution witnesses were: Carlos J. Cristobal who alleged that on March 9, 1991, he was a passenger of United Airlines Flight No. The Villadolid brothers were mentioned by a certain Rhoda Pujanes alias Dang, who claimed she overheard Villadolid and his friends, including Miguel Rodriguez and Michael Gatchalian (both co-accused of Webb), talking about the massacre during a pot session in 1991. The Vizconde Massacre was the multiple homicide of members of the Vizconde family on June 30, 1991 at their residence in BF Homes, Paraaque, Metro Manila, Philippines. When we die, that is when we will be given the whole truth May the Lord console you in all your afflictions, The priest said. The fight is not over. 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. Credibility of a witness: In Vizconde case not credible, but credible in the Abadilla case. It is hard to believe this there is a record of supposed arrival from other country but no record of departure in 1991 or in any month of 1991, she said. InVizconde case: The SC applied two tests in rejecting the positive identification of Alfaro: firstly, the credibility of a witness; secondly, the testimony should be believable, not inherently contrived. TV-14. [11], Alfaro's testimony was corroborated by other witnesses including: Lolita Birrer, a former live-in partner of policeman Gerardo Biong, who narrated the manner of how Biong investigated and tried to cover up the crime. (Update 6:47 p.m.) The Supreme Court (SC) has cast doubts on the credibility of Jessica Alfaro, the so-called star witness in the gruesome killings of three members of the Vizconde family almost two decades ago. The prescription period does not matter to me, its just a date, he said. Remember that death is the ultimate equalizer. This site uses cookies. Hello friends! Am I dismayed by the decision of the (Supreme Court)? 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. With Romeo Vasquez, Elizabeth Oropesa, Robert Arevalo, Tommy Abuel. Lauro Vizconde the husband of Estrellita and father of Carmela and Jennifer, was in the United State on business when the murders took place. "[29], The court maintained that for a person to be convicted there should not be "a reasonable, lingering doubt as to his guilt." A lying witness can make as positive an identification as a truthful witness can. 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. a contribution to Human Rights work, Asian Human Rights Commission Several jeepney drivers groups have called for an unprecedented one-week strike next week to demand extension of the deadline for phasing out traditional vehicles and replacing them with modern It will take over 200 years for women to be at par with men, a news report from Davos said. 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. The SC required this test as necessary before a testimony of positive identification could be accepted as credible and with merit. Herbas and Alejo worked for the Abadillas as security guards. At about 4 a.m. on June 30, 1991, Gaviola woke up and entered the bedrooms to get the Webb's dirty laundry and wash it as part of her job. The prosecution did not present him as their witness during the trial. Firstly, in the Vizconde case, the SC still held as credible the corroborating testimonies of the witnesses favouring Hubert Jeffrey who are mostly his relatives and friends in support of his defence of alibi. [2] Two of the accused remain fugitives from the law: Joey Filart and Artemio Ventura. The most significant topic that Ive ever written about and which I personally got involved in was the Vizconde massacre. 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. But in the Abadilla case, the relatives and friends are not an impartial witness to corroborate the defence of alibi of the accused. April 28, 1995 Jessica Alfaro presents herself as a witness and accuses Hubert Webb. Indeed, her superior testified that she volunteered to play the role of a witness in the Vizconde killings when she could not produce a man she promised to the NBI. LIKE me to support Mr. Vizconde She said the US-based defense witnesses, most of whom are relatives or friends of the Webb family suffered from "incorrigible and selective memory syndrome". Alfaro said Estrellita was killed before Webb began to rape Carmela. 132577 People of the Philippines vs. Hubert Jeffrey P. Webb, 1999, G.R. Similar to the Vizconde case, the five accused made a defence of alibi claiming that they were somewhere else on June 13, 1996 when the murder of Abadilla happened. It was hard to tell which made up the truth and the lies. All rights are reserved. It strictly laid down these as the least requirement in evaluating the credibility of the claim of positive identification. No. Connections Followed by The Untold Story: Vizconde Massacre II - May the Lord Be with Us! Kaya laban lang tayo. She also said that Bing was accosting Ging Rodriguez on why he had to stab and kill a young girl. [12] (Under Philippine law, generally, alibi is the weakest defense, especially where there is direct testimony of an eyewitness, duly corroborated by another. 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. Please try again. It cautioned itself from accepting the testimonies of witnesses without applying these tests. My program is the originalsumbungan ng bayan sa radyo(roughly, citizens complaint center on radio). :Isumbongwill make a comeback on PTV-4 on June 12, 2021. Abadilla Case Petition for Review on Certiorario:http://campaigns.ahrchk.net/abadilla5/docs/A5-FinalAppealPetition.pdf The SCs decision in acquitting all the accused in the Vizconde case has fundamental contradictions to its earlier decision affirming the guilty verdict of the accused in the Abadilla case. Footnote: This article comprises the text of a statement issued by the Asian Human Rights Commission, AHRC-STM-266-2010, dated 21 December 2010. Another accused, Joey Filart also fled to the United States. Pray to them. It defended the attack on Alejos credibility, for example, his inconsistencies on the number of gunmen, arguing that this had already been explained by Alejo during cross-examination by correcting his earlier statement and that the affidavits, being ex-parte, are almost always incomplete and often inaccurate, but do not really detract from the credibility of witnesses. due to "overwhelming evidence that showed Webb and the other accused had conspired to rape Carmela and, in the process, kill her and the rest of the family." 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. White was mistaken in saying that Gatchalian and company went in and out of the gated community many times, since they only entered once. It held that a positive declaration from a witness that he saw the accused commit the crime should not automatically cancel out the accuseds claim that he did not do it. Manila Times Special Report on the Vizconde Case, G.R. Asuncion, 27, was a constant playmate of Jennifer Vizconde, who was 7 years old when she was killed. X' key to real perpetrators of Vizconde murders? He adds, this Court takes judicial notice of reported irregularities and tampering of passports in the years prior to the recent issuance by the Department of Foreign Affairs(DFA) of machine-readable passports. Published July 4, 2011 7:24pm. Vizconde said his quest for justice was continuing despite the end of the prescription period for the prosecution of his familys killers. Their claims were corroborated by witnesses who are disinterested parties, their relatives and friends and documentary evidence. 5. 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. Jennifer Diaz, chief of the women and childrens desk, told Allan to file the complaint with the barangay where they reside. [citation needed] (The Philippine Rules of Evidence require official attestation of the authenticity of any public document presented in evidence; as per Sec. InAbadilla case: Both the RTC and the CA did not apply this test of credibility of a witness before accepting the testimony of Alejo. 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. 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. Hubert and his co-accused were convicted by the Paraaque Regional Trial Court for the crime on June 6, 2000. 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 . 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. 1 newspaper in terms of circulation and readership. Therefore, the SCs rejection of Villamaras opinion demonstrates a fundamental contradiction to its September 7 decision on the Abadilla case. As a result, the court reverses the decision of the Court of Appeals, and acquits Webb, et al. Philstar Global Corp. All Rights Reserved. Webb's testimony was also contradicted by other US-based defense witnesses who said they usually saw him "going to the beach, malling, bar-hopping or playing basketball. Remember when I made the disclosure that someone is pressuring the justices to vote for a reversal? 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. This was a case that was solved nine years after the murders and then unsolved 10 years later. He then hurled the little girl to a wall and started stabbing her. I got my style of writing when I was a reporter, news writer and newsreader on radio during the pre-martial law era, and as a deskman and feature writer of the Philippines News Agency (PNA). Both Webb and del Toro could not describe in court what Hubert's work was, Tolentino said. Alejos testimonies in open court were also not consistent to what he had said to the police investigators immediately after the murder. 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. Acting solely on Alfaros testimony, the Department of Justice (DoJ) filed charges of rape with homicide against the eight accused on August 1995. On December 14, 2010, the SC rendered its decision on the appeals of the accused, questioning the guilty verdict by the RTC and the CA. 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. The lower courts, the Supreme Court said, held that "Webb was actually in Paraaque when the Vizconde killings took place". 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. Lauro Vizconde on Thursday marks the 20th anniversary of the murders of his wife and two daughters at his residence in BF Homes, Paraaque City. 16:53. 24, Rule 134, R. Firstly, like Alfaro, Alejo also received money and free accommodation from the persons who had interest in his testimony. Webbs co-accused, Antonio Lejano, is a son of a known singer and celebrity. In this case, the existence of an earlier negative report on the NIIS record on file concerning the entry of appellant Webb into and his exit from the US on March 9, 1991, and October 26, 1992, respectively, had raised serious doubt on the veracity and accuracy of the subsequently issued second certification dated August 31, 1995 which is based merely on a computer print-out of his alleged entry on March 9, 1991, and departure on October 26, 1992. We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. The court rejected his testimony because he was a disgruntled witness. I was a barbarian in my college years at the University of the Philippines. I incurred the ire of the citizenry, including some of my fellow columnists in theInquirer,for my defense of Hubert. It was also not true that there was no showing that he (Alejo) was actuated by improper motive to testify falsely against the accused because the defence had since been challenging his credibility during the trial. [56] According to De Lima, all the new witnesses passed the polygraph test. But feeling uneasy, she decided to go up to the stockroom near Hubert's room to see what he was doing. It was based on the rule of the minority and not the majority as they (the SC justices) had enunciated in Fortich v. She did not show up at the NBI as a spontaneous witness (only after four years) bothered by her conscience. Many of the stories in my columns in previous newspapers were complaints from citizens. : Directed by Carlo J. Caparas. A local elected official whos being groomed to run for a national office is being sold to the highest bidder by the politicians spouse. [61], The findings also point to another set of suspects, namely Dong Villadolid and his brother Bing. The massacre and surrounding events were depicted in the 1993 film The Vizconde Massacre Story (God Help Us!) The President has time and again said that he was very tired of running the country and, if he had his way, would have stepped down. 4. In the Vizconde case, the SC does not accept conjecture as the basis of its decision. I became a villain in the eyes of the citizenry that was crying for blood; but I was steadfast. They were sentenced to reclusion perpetua and ordered to indemnify the Vizconde family Php 3 million for the murders. But both the RTC and the CA rejected his defence ruling that his alibi cannot stand against Alfaros positive identification of him as the rapist and killer. The readers will notice soon enough the brevity of each topic. But to Judge Amelita Tolentino of the Paranaque Regional Trial Court, the truth was the account of star witness Jessica Alfaro. Alfaro said she was then having reservations when she first executed the first affidavit and held back vital information due to her natural reaction of mistrust. VIZCONDE MASSACRE: 20 YEARS, TWO FACES OF JUSTICE Report by Maki Pulido It is one of the most controversial cases in the country's history, the most shocking crime in the 90s - the Vizconde Massacre. But the grieving father couldn't distinguish the truth from the lies. Biong was released from jail on November 30, 2010, after serving his sentence. Fax: +(852) 2698 6367, Copyright 2023 Asian Human Rights Commission. 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. Hell never return to the Philippines, said the Thai tourist whose cash was filched by Manila airport security personnel. No acquittal has been made as to the two accused, Filart and Ventura, who remain at-large. The public and the media continue to watch as the years go by . [8] If, on examination, the DNA of the subject specimen does not belong to Webb, then he did not rape Carmela. The presumption leaned on is disputable and can be overcome by evidence to the contrary. 176389 / G.R. He alleged that Webb bought illegal drugs from him on two other occasions in May 1991. The women were found dead with multiple stab wounds and no witnesses, murder weapons or motive have been uncovered. "[29] In general, the court said that Alfaro's story "lacks sense or suffers from inherent inconsistencies. On October 1, 1996, Judge Amelita Tolentino admitted only 10 of the 142 pieces of evidence the defense presented. While the SC rejected Alfaros testimony being not a credible witness, it held Alejo still a credible witness despite the inconsistencies in his testimony. Democrito Barcenas, former Integrated Bar of the Philippines Cebu City president and regional coordinator of the Free Legal Assistance Group (FLAG): I think that most of the justices are right in their decision. Anyone can be paid! It is time to heal the past. Since I was introduced to The STAR readers in the front page, Ill hit the ground running. 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. Former Paraaque City cop Gerardo Biong walked free from the New Bilibid Prisons (NBP) in Muntinlupa City after serving a 12-year sentence. 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. Shades of what happened in the 2004 elections, when a national official was paid a huge sum to run under a political party. This policewoman is either ignorant of the law or plain lazy. Evid. [2] Alfaro said that policeman Gerardo Biong "was instructed by Webb, in my presence, to take care of the house where the incident happened". This coincided with his passport and Philippine Immigration records but were dismissed by Tolentino due to belief that these documents can possibly be falsified. "[21], In April 2010, the Supreme Court approved DNA testing to be performed on the semen specimen obtained during autopsy from Carmela Vizconde. G/F, 52 Princess Margaret Road 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. The film claims to have been based on new evidence from the then-ongoing trial. She took advantage of her familiarity with these details to include in her testimony. After the Mass, VACC founding chair Dante Jimenez urged Congress to initiate impeachment proceedings against the seven Supreme Court justices who either voted to acquit Webb and coaccused or abstained from voting last December.