I told my family that I did my best. [2] Alfaro said that policeman Gerardo Biong "was instructed by Webb, in my presence, to take care of the house where the incident happened". God would be stupid to borrow Digongs words if He gifts him the vice presidency the second time around. As to the failure to present the forensic evidence and its subsequent loss, the SC held: the semen specimen taken from Carmela cannot possibly lie. She was the prosecutions worst possible choice for a witness. starring Kris Aquino as Carmela Vizconde. 176389 / G.R. Alfaro, upon explaining on how the house was ransacked, (the Paraaque police had earlier blamed house robbers as suspects), said that Ventura was looking for the front-door key and the car key. Aug 5, 2008. Sison was ordered to desist from further investigating that angle by then Philippine National Police Capital Region Commander Marino Filart after six members of akyat bahay gang (burglars) were arrested by Regional Police Unit in October 1991. 3. Therefore, the applications of the SC on evaluating the defence of alibi of the accused have not been equally applied in these two cases. Inconsistencies: In Vizconde case damages credibility, in Abadilla case does not. 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. I was a barbarian in my college years at the University of the Philippines. To support this, Webb presented a Certification issued by the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service of August 31, 1995 confirming that his entry into that country was recorded. 24, Rule 134, R. The case remained unsolved for almost four years until eyewitness, Jessica Alfaro Testified that Hubert Webb is the lead suspect and responsible of the crime committed. With your meaningful insights, help shape the stories that can shape the country. Vizconde Massacre Case Digest - Philippine True Crime Stories | Martin Rules. 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. 176864. Unreliability of Jessica Alfaro's testimony: Alfaro had prior knowledge on the facts of the case having been an, Alfaro was not able to explain why the house was ransacked if robbery was not the motive of Webb and his group, Unreliability of testimony from other witnesses, Alfaro's testimony will fall apart if Webb was not at the crime scene and will relieve the others accused of the crime. [56] According to De Lima, all the new witnesses passed the polygraph test. The Truth about Mendiola Massacre - Philippine True Crime Stories | Martin Rules. Welcome to my maiden column in TheSTAR, now the countrys No. Webbs co-accused, Antonio Lejano, is a son of a known singer and celebrity. Di naman ako puwede magtrabaho don (If that's the case, then I should have had a salary. 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." Youd be surprised who the people are behind the call for his extension; some of them are top politicians. [17], On January 6, 2000, Judge Tolentino rendered her decision, finding Hubert Webb, Peter Estrada, Hospicio Fernandez, Michael Gatchalian, Antonio Lejano II and Miguel Rodriguez guilty beyond reasonable doubt of the crime of rape with homicide. Corona." InVizconde case: The majority of the justices strongly argued against relying on conjectures on deciding the case, particularly on the claim that Hubert Jeffrey could have been in the Philippines, and not in the U.S., when the crime happened. 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. Movie producers and directors rode the wave of public outcry by creating true-to-life films based on such heinous crimes. The trial began in August 1995 before Paraaque RTC Judge Amelita Tolentino. The massacre and surrounding events were depicted in the 1993 film The Vizconde Massacre Story (God Help Us!) Police assets are often criminals themselves. [58] George, a drug dealer, claimed he was introduced to Webb by former SPO1 Gerardo Biong sometime in April 1991 where the young Webb allegedly purchased from him 10grams of shabu worth P10,000. By providing an email address. The Untold Story: Vizconde Massacre II - May the Lord Be with Us! A second movie, The Untold Story: Vizconde Massacre II, was released in 1994. Abadilla Case Petition for Review on Certiorario:http://campaigns.ahrchk.net/abadilla5/docs/A5-FinalAppealPetition.pdf 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. Hubert and his co-accused were convicted by the Paraaque Regional Trial Court for the crime on June 6, 2000. De Lima also said seven new witnesses claimed they saw Webb in the country during the months of April, May and June 1991. The Vizconde Massacre. G.R. Conjectures and suspicions are not facts, hence, they have no evidentiary value. Jennifer Diaz, chief of the women and childrens desk, told Allan to file the complaint with the barangay where they reside. I expected this decision because since the start, I knew that Jessica Alfaro was not entirely telling the truth. I would not have ended up like this if you had not neglected me). You are just a few clicks away from making While the SC rejected Alfaros testimony being not a credible witness, it held Alejo still a credible witness despite the inconsistencies in his testimony. 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. The Vizconde massacre has been dubbed as the trial of the century as the accused hailed from prominent families of the Philippines. The other defendants were Antonio Lejano II, Hospicio Fernandez, Michael Gatchalian, Miguel Rodriguez, Peter Estrada, Joey Filart and Artemio Ventura. He was sentenced to eleven years in prison. The Vizconde massacre, dubbed the crime of the 20th century, was my defining moment as a columnist and defender of the oppressed and those. [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. Webb's travel documents and other paper trail of his stay in the US are unreliable proof of his absence in the Philippines at the time of the commission of the crime charged. I incurred the ire of the citizenry, including some of my fellow columnists in theInquirer,for my defense of Hubert. 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 filming location took place in the actual home of the Vizconde's where the massacre took place on June 30, 1991. This site uses cookies. 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. Pray to them. 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. 4. Reporters jostled with Vizcondes relatives and friends in his garage, where Fr. Connections Followed by The Untold Story: Vizconde Massacre II - May the Lord Be with Us! The unconstitutionality of prior restraint. Originally, there were seven accused charged in this case. Alfaro also said that she bumped into Biong at the Faces Disco in Makati in March 1995 and relayed to her the offer of the group to give her a free ticket to the United States to shut her up. Still seeking justice for his family's grim fate, Lauro Vizconde exhausts all resources available to him. 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. 1 newspaper in terms of circulation and readership. Be consoled that the truth will always come out, Hernandez advised Vizconde. On June 30, 1991, three Vizconde women Estrellita, 49; her 19-year-old daughter, Carmela and the younger Jennifer, 6 were found dead in their home at BF Homes Village in Paraaque. 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. With Romeo Vasquez, Elizabeth Oropesa, Robert Arevalo, Tommy Abuel. 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. Kung di ninyo ako pinabayaan, 'di ako magkakaganito. (Fuck you all! ABADILLA MURDER CASE: This case is about the murder of Rolando Abadilla, a police colonel during Marcos regime, at 8:30 on June 13, 1996 at the Katipunan Avenue, Quezon City. 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. My program is the originalsumbungan ng bayan sa radyo(roughly, citizens complaint center on radio).