I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. 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. [citation needed] (The Philippine Rules of Evidence require official attestation of the authenticity of any public document presented in evidence; as per Sec. Night of June 2930, 1991 Estrellita, Carmela and Jennifer Vizconde were killed in their Paraaque home; Carmela was found to have been raped. [54] He was laid to rest at Manila Memorial Park Sucat on February 17. Former Paraaque policeman Gerardo Biong was found guilty as an accessory for burning bedsheets and tampering with other evidence in the crime. The women were found dead with multiple stab wounds and no witnesses, murder weapons or motive have been uncovered. Indeed, the testimony of a single witness, when positive and credible, is sufficient to support a conviction even for murder. I told my family that I did my best. 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. She also testified that Biong received money at a house that she later learned belonged to then Paraaque Congressman Freddie Webb; the Webb family's maids, Mila Gaviola and Nerissa Rosales, who both testified that Hubert Webb was at home on June 30, 1991. Tel: +(852) 2698 6339 Acting solely on Alfaros testimony, the Department of Justice (DoJ) filed charges of rape with homicide against the eight accused on August 1995. But feeling uneasy, she decided to go up to the stockroom near Hubert's room to see what he was doing. 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. 1. InVizconde case: The SC has given weight to the importance of forensic evidence in a court trial. The passing away of Lauro Vizconde a few days ago does not close the sad chapter on the tragedy known as the Vizconde massacre. The SC acquitted all the accused, reversing and dismissing the guilty verdict of the RTC and the CA. Yes, but what can I do (?). I was a barbarian in my college years at the University of the Philippines. Choose Gods endless kind of love., Hernandez also reminded Vizconde that he now had three saints in Heaven.. 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. 121234 Hubert Webb et al. [57] The witnesses include an electrician, a drug dealer, a couple of neighborhood basketball players, a hairdresser and a village security guard. The trial began in August 1995 before Paraaque RTC Judge Amelita Tolentino. 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. On June 30, 1991, Estrellita Vizconde and her two daughters: Carmela and Jennifer, were found lifeless inside their home in Paraaque. [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". No. She added that suspect Miguel Rodriguez warned her to "shut up or you're gonna get killed" in the same disco on April 8, 1995, prompting her to voluntarily submit herself to the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) for protection. The public and the media continue to watch as the years go by . [47], On December 28, 2010, new witnesses have come forward accusing Hubert Webb and others of allegedly being behind the Vizconde massacre. This is despite questions to his credibility for receiving money and enjoying privileges while he was in Abadillas custody and the existence of inconsistencies in his testimonies in open court. [139] Against positive evidence, alibi becomes most unsatisfactory. While washing Hubert Webb's clothing, Gaviola said she noticed fresh bloodstains on his shirt. I expected this decision because since the start, I knew that Jessica Alfaro was not entirely telling the truth. Violent Vizconde Massacre | Crimes That Shocked Asia - YouTube De Lima said they could still go after Filart and Ventura, as well as the Villadolid brothers, since the prescriptive period of 20 years for homicide does not apply to them because they were abroad. [29], For the alibi to be established "the accused must prove by positive, clear, and satisfactory evidence that he was present at another place at the time of the perpetration of the crime, and that it was physically impossible for him to be at the scene of the crime". [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. 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. 2. Alfaro had testified that she knew the suspects and was at the Vizconde house when the crime was committed. Originally, there were seven accused charged in this case. So how can such accused penetrate a mind that has been made cynical by the rule drilled into his head that a defense of alibi is a hangmans noose in the face of a witness positively swearing. The trial of the case having been long concluded, the requirements of the law may have been satisfied, but not the demands of justice. Pray to them. At any rate, Rameses de Jesus admitted that they were using the new car of Lenido Lumanog. The prosecutors, the RTC and the CA have been made aware of this fact by the defence. He alleged that Webb bought illegal drugs from him on two other occasions in May 1991. On the contrary, it reopens it. 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. He and six others spent 15 years in jail. Tolentino also said, the photographs and videotapes purportedly showing Webb in the United States appeared to be tampered. Methinks one year would give Eleazar ample time impose his brand of discipline on one of the most undisciplined police forces in the world. Connections Followed by The Untold Story: Vizconde Massacre II - May the Lord Be with Us! Estrellita, Carmela and Jennifer Vizconde. 182555/G.R. Their original conviction was capital punishment but their sentence was modified to life imprisonment when the death penalty was abolished. LIKE me to support Mr. Vizconde Her mother, Estrellita, 47, and sister, Jennifer, 7, were also killed. The unconstitutionality of prior restraint. (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. On April 28, 1995, National Bureau of Investigations asset and self-confessed drug user Jessica Alfaro came forward to police authorities to shed light on the killing of the Vizconde family. Webb had presented the alibi that he was in the United States when the crime was committed, but he was still found guilty by the Paraaque Regional Trial Court. 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. However, keep in mind not to be vindictive. Justice Villarama argued that a photocopy of Webbs passport in court to support his alibi and the testimonies of witnesses, mostly his relatives and friends, could not be given merit, by cautioning his fellow justices that it can be gleaned from the fact that passports and plane tickets indicating dates of arrival and departure do not necessarily prove that the very same person actually took the flight and added that indeed, alibi cannot be sustained where it is not only without credible corroboration, but also where it does not, on its face, demonstrate the physical impossibility of the accuseds presence at the place and time of the commission of the crime. 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. Philstar Global Corp. All Rights Reserved. No. February 26, 2021. . [2] Two of the accused remain fugitives from the law: Joey Filart and Artemio Ventura. About the Show; You May Also Like . She said that when she entered Hubert's room, she saw him wearing only his pants, awake and smoking in bed. [56] According to De Lima, all the new witnesses passed the polygraph test. Aug 5, 2008. 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.Estrellita Vizconde, 49, suffered thirteen stab wounds; Maria Carmela Vizconde, 19, suffered seventeen stab wounds and had been raped before she was killed . 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. [15] The accused alleged that by rejecting 132 of the 142 pieces of evidence, Tolentino had set the tone for their conviction. The prosecution of this case only began in August 10, 1995, four years after the massacre happened, when Jessica Alfaro, an informant working for the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), told lawyer Artemio Sacaguing, an official of the NBI, that she knew someone who had the real story behind the Vizconde massacre. 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. Biong was released from jail on November 30, 2010, after serving his sentence. We have ruled that accused-appellant may not invoke the acquittal of the other conspirators to merit the reversal of his conviction for murder. Knowing this, I cannot but hesitate to swallow everything that Alejo said at the trial. It cautioned itself from accepting the testimonies of witnesses without applying these tests. But to Judge Amelita Tolentino of the Paranaque Regional Trial Court, the truth was the account of star witness Jessica Alfaro. Pinoy murders: The worst true crimes in the Philippines The CA held that these ballistic results are inconclusive and can never prevail over appellants positive identification by eyewitness Freddie Alejo. Sulu in the eyes of my good friend Princess Jacel Kiram is a potential eco-tourism destination and fruit basket of the country. SC slams 'unbelievable' testimony of Vizconde massacre witness Nos. 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. 5. Hubert argued that the specimen could exonerate him from the charge and support his defence that he did not rape the victim. They were sentenced to reclusion perpetua and ordered to indemnify the Vizconde family Php 3 million for the murders. I went to the US to check on senator Webbs allegations I paid for my fare and accommodation, by the way and found that, indeed, Hubert was there when the Vizconde women were being butchered at their home in Paraaque. 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. Webb's reliance on the presumption of regularity of official functions, stressing the fact that the US-INS certifications are official documents, is misplaced. The Jessica Alfaro Story in 1995 was meanwhile focused on the star witness, portrayed by Alice Dixson. Episode on July 5, 2011 Tuesday after Saksi! New Vizconde massacre witness found | Inquirer News Be consoled that the truth will always come out, Hernandez advised Vizconde. Alibi cannot prevail over the positive identification of a credible witness [140].. 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. G/F, 52 Princess Margaret Road In the Vizconde case, the SC does not accept conjecture as the basis of its decision. [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. Those initially jailed for. 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. Birrer said she had accompanied Biong to the Vizconde house to destroy the evidence and to retrieve Webb's jacket and the murder weapon. No. I will continue to play that role as long as I live. Alejo had been under the Abadillas custody and protection instead of that of the WPP of the government. The Vizconde massacre, dubbed the crime of the 20th century, was my defining moment as a columnist and defender of the oppressed and those. 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. Webb presented certifications from the U.S. Immigration but he failed to submit as evidence in court the original copy of his passport with immigration entry stamped on it. 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. She took advantage of her familiarity with these details to include in her testimony. Estrellita, 47, had suffered thirteen stab wounds; Carmela, 18, had suffered seventeen stab wounds and had been raped before she was killed; and Jennifer, 7, had nineteen stab . 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. To find out more, please click this link. [8] If, on examination, the DNA of the subject specimen does not belong to Webb, then he did not rape Carmela. The lower courts, the Supreme Court said, held that "Webb was actually in Paraaque when the Vizconde killings took place". Forensic evidence: In Vizconde case it cannot lie, in Abadilla case it is inconclusive. With Romeo Vasquez, Elizabeth Oropesa, Robert Arevalo, Tommy Abuel. The Vizconde Massacre | GMA News Online This is one of the most controversial and widely publicised massacre cases because of the involvement of the son of a former Philippine Senator, Freddie Webb; and six others from a wealthy family background similar to that of the accused. Eleazar, a strict disciplinarian, is probably the only PNP chief who is loved and respected by the citizenry. I did that hoping to make them have second thoughts about doing so,.There is no justice in the Philippines. 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. 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. 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. Besides the horror itself, the suspected perpetrators included high-society figures. 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. 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. Sign up now! She did not show up at the NBI as a spontaneous witness (only after four years) bothered by her conscience. 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. 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. De Lima also said seven new witnesses claimed they saw Webb in the country during the months of April, May and June 1991. Alfaro said Estrellita was killed before Webb began to rape Carmela. No two persons have the same DNA fingerprint, with the exception of identical twins. [29], In his dissenting opinion, Justice Villarama argued that the claim of Webb that he could not have committed the crime because he left for the United States on March 9, 1991, and returned to the Philippines only on October 26, 1992, was correctly rejected by the Regional Trial Court and Court of Appeals. The SC, however, upheld the RTC and the CAs judgement that the defence of alibi of the accused is a weak defense, (and that) for it to prosper, the accused must prove not only that he was at some other place at the time of the commission of the crime, but also, that it was physically impossible for him to be or within its immediate vicinity. Alfaro implicated the children of wealthy and prominent families, including Hubert Webb, Antonio Lejano II, Hospicio Fernandez, Michael Gatchalian, Miguel Rodriguez, Peter Estrada, Joey Vffrillaret and Artemio Ventura. But Villaramas opinion was not considered by the SC in their majority decision. The DoJ also placed Alfaro under the Witness Protection Program (WPP) during the trial period. G.R. [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. Welcome to my maiden column in TheSTAR, now the countrys No. No. A second movie, The Untold Story: Vizconde Massacre II, was released in 1994. The Visconde Massacre Case - Filipino Journal InAbadilla case: The SC admitted the positive identification of witness Freddie Alejo when it considered him a credible witness. 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. Appendix: Case analysis: Supreme Court's rulings on Vizconde and [48] Other witnesses say Webb was in the Philippines at the time of the murders. Among those present were former Vice President Teofisto Guingona; Arsenio Boy Evangelista, father of carjack victim Venson Evangelista; Dacer-Corbito witness Cezar Mancao and his lawyer Ferdinand Topacio; and members of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC). 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". She was the prosecutions worst possible choice for a witness. [60], Although Webb's group can no longer be retried because of double jeopardy, De Lima said the purpose of the reinvestigation was to uncover the truth and bring closure to Lauro Vizconde.[65][66]. No. 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. Person of interest in hazing case of Adamson student found dead, Jeepney phaseout: Its more than just new vehicles, Sandiganbayan convicts ex-Pagcor chair Genuino of graft, House energy committee chair Arroyo bats for cheap electricity, LIVE UPDATES: Face-to-face classes, work suspended as transport strike looms, vivo announces PHP 1,000 price drop on vivo V25e, Kickstart summer with vivos hot smartphone deals this 3.3, Over 24,000 hectares of coral reef at risk following Mindoro oil spill, Frat members planned to burn Adamson hazing victims body police | INQToday, Joey de Leon laughs off Eat Bulaga rebranding rumors; Tito Sotto meets up with show producer Tony Tuviera, LIST: LGUs, schools suspend face-to-face classes, work as transport strike looms, NBA: Devin Booker, Suns cruise past Bulls in second half. It took the trial and appeal process in this case fifteen years. The Truth about Mendiola Massacre - Philippine True Crime Stories | Martin Rules. He also ordered the Secretary of Justice Leila de Lima to study the possibility of giving compensation to Webb and others. The Vizconde massacre made headlines in the Philippines in the '90s and started a trend in filmmaking. 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. 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. Alfaro claimed that Hubert was angry at Carmela thus raping and murdering her, her younger sister and her mother, to supposedly revenge her unfaithfulness to him. Six months is not enough for him to clean up the Aegean stable that is the PNP. A police officer, Gerardo Biong, has also been charged for destroying the evidence at the crime scene. The RTC, however, acquitted Delos Santos despite being positively identified also by Alejo as one of those who was present at the crime scene. Hubert Jeffrey Webb sought for an acquittal after he had found out that the NBI could no longer produce the DNA specimen extracted from the cadaver of the rape victim. 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. God would be stupid to borrow Digongs words if He gifts him the vice presidency the second time around. But big offenses, such as rape or attempted rape, should be filed with the police or the prosecutors office. [29] No. 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. "[29], The court maintained that for a person to be convicted there should not be "a reasonable, lingering doubt as to his guilt." Reporters jostled with Vizcondes relatives and friends in his garage, where Fr. I stand by my story. The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to draw the attention of the Supreme Court (SC) of the Philippines to its recent decision on two well-known cases tried in the lower courts; the conviction in the Vizconde Massacre case was overturned while that of the Abadilla murder case was affirmed. Eh di sana may sweldo ako. Rodolfo Sison, the police investigator originally assigned to the case in 1991. The court said that Alfaro was not a credible witness and that her "story of what she personally saw must be believable, not inherently contrived". vs. People of the Philippines et al., 1997, G.R. [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.

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