the truth about vizconde massacre

Executive M/Sgt. 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. She took advantage of her familiarity with these details to include in her testimony. They were sentenced to reclusion perpetua and ordered to indemnify the Vizconde family Php 3 million for the murders. Methinks one year would give Eleazar ample time impose his brand of discipline on one of the most undisciplined police forces in the world. G.R. 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. Once again, the SCs applications of jurisprudence on the admissibility of forensic evidence in criminal trial have not been equally applied. 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. The Vizconde massacre - my defining moment | Philstar.com Remember that death is the ultimate equalizer. (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. [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. Eh di sana may sweldo ako. 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. Webbs co-accused, Antonio Lejano, is a son of a known singer and celebrity. The court noted the inconsistency between Alfaro's testimony of Webb being Carmela's boyfriend, who had no reason in breaking the glass panel of the house's front door to enter the house; Alfaro said that Webb "picked up some stone and, out of the blue, hurled it at the glass-paneled front door". I will be conferring with my lawyers about my future moves.. [54] He was laid to rest at Manila Memorial Park Sucat on February 17. He also ordered the Secretary of Justice Leila de Lima to study the possibility of giving compensation to Webb and others. It is time to heal the past. Episode on July 5, 2011 Tuesday after Saksi! 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. Estrellita, Carmela and Jennifer Vizconde. The Vizconde Massacre. Youd be surprised who the people are behind the call for his extension; some of them are top politicians. 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. 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. 2. Webb's reliance on the presumption of regularity of official functions, stressing the fact that the US-INS certifications are official documents, is misplaced. [19], The Court of Appeals' Third Division voted 32 to deny Webb's motion for reconsideration and upheld the ruling of Judge Tolentino on December 16, 2005. Alfaro had testified that she knew the suspects and was at the Vizconde house when the crime was committed. All rights are reserved. 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. 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. 3. 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. I stand by my story. The lower courts, however, reasoned that "Webb's alibi cannot stand against Alfaro's positive identification of him." The fight is not over. A police officer, Gerardo Biong, has also been charged for destroying the evidence at the crime scene. But in the Abadilla case, the relatives and friends are not an impartial witness to corroborate the defence of alibi of the accused. vs. People of the Philippines et al., 1997, G.R. [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. Webb wanted Alfaro, the then-girlfriend of one of the accused men, Peter Estrada, to join them because Estrellita Vizconde only allowed her daughter to go out and entertain female visitors. [56] According to De Lima, all the new witnesses passed the polygraph test. The court also said that it was "possible for Alfaro to lie" on the details of the case. But the grieving father couldn't distinguish the truth from the lies. And while justice seems elusive, life must go on, Vizcondes grandniece Katherine Asuncion said, reading from a family statement. 150 likes. The unconstitutionality of prior restraint. 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. It cannot be coached or allured by a promise of reward or financial support. al, 1995, G.R. Like Herbas, court records had also shown that Alejo has been receiving money and free accommodation from the Abadillas. With the exception of Filart and Ventura who had been convicted in absentia the men were acquitted by the Supreme Court on December 14, 2010 for failure of the prosecution to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt. You are just a few clicks away from making 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. But to Judge Amelita Tolentino of the Paranaque Regional Trial Court, the truth was the account of star witness Jessica Alfaro. [60] Mario, a hair stylist during the period June 1991, testified that Webb, along with Tony Boy Lejano and Dong Ventura had their haircut. InVizconde case: The SC has given weight to the importance of forensic evidence in a court trial. Vizconde should go after the national government. 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. I would not have ended up like this if you had not neglected me). Asuncion, 27, was a constant playmate of Jennifer Vizconde, who was 7 years old when she was killed. 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. Birrer said she had accompanied Biong to the Vizconde house to destroy the evidence and to retrieve Webb's jacket and the murder weapon. The SC rendered its judgment on the Abadilla case on September 7 and on the Vizconde case on December 14 of this year [2010]. Hubert and his co-accused were convicted by the Paraaque Regional Trial Court for the crime on June 6, 2000. Who does forget the heart-crushing 1991 Visconde massacre, with Jessica Alfaro standing as the star witness, whistle-blowing the details how these young men before, coming from our society's influential families, killed Mang Lauro's wife and his two daughters. I can't express enough how sad and unjust today's story. This was a case that was solved nine years after the murders and then unsolved 10 years later. Sacaguing broke the guidelines in taking affidavits from witnesses. MANILA, Philippines - Six new witnesses reveal Hubert Webb, son of former Senator Freddie Webb, was in the Philippines when the Vizconde massacre took place on June 1991. 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. Lauro Vizconde: "Is there still anyone among you who doubts that there is rampant corruption in our government? Therefore, the SCs rejection of Villamaras opinion demonstrates a fundamental contradiction to its September 7 decision on the Abadilla case. Alejos testimonies in open court were also not consistent to what he had said to the police investigators immediately after the murder. Both Webb and del Toro could not describe in court what Hubert's work was, Tolentino said. De Lima also said seven new witnesses claimed they saw Webb in the country during the months of April, May and June 1991. She did not know nor met any of them. I also updated them on the new twist in the investigation. No. 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 . I stood my ground because I had all the facts in my hand. InAbadilla case: The SC admitted the positive identification of witness Freddie Alejo when it considered him a credible witness. 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. But Justice Conchita Carpio Morales, who concurred with the decision, wrote strongly against basing judgement on conjectures: Facts decide cases. No. True Crime. It was hard to tell which made up the truth and the lies. Let the love of God prevail. Footnote: This article comprises the text of a statement issued by the Asian Human Rights Commission, AHRC-STM-266-2010, dated 21 December 2010. . Eleazar, a strict disciplinarian, is probably the only PNP chief who is loved and respected by the citizenry. 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". It was based on the rule of the minority and not the majority as they (the SC justices) had enunciated in Fortich v. 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. 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. Biong walks free, insists he's innocent | ABS-CBN News Hong Kong [8] If, on examination, the DNA of the subject specimen does not belong to Webb, then he did not rape Carmela. 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 said the same MRT provided data that several Webbs arrived in the country, including Hubert, sometime in October 1992. He said that he heard Hubert Webb quarreling with another young looking customer. 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. Philstar Global Corp. All Rights Reserved. Based on my findings, I defended Hubert in my column and in my radio and TV programs. Corona." April 28, 1995 Jessica Alfaro presents herself as a witness and accuses Hubert Webb. 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. 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. Your subscription could not be saved. SC slams 'unbelievable' testimony of Vizconde massacre witness. 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. [29] [9] They were acquitted by a trial judge in September 1993 for insufficient evidence.[9]. 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. Biong was released from jail on November 30, 2010, after serving his sentence. 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. 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. His intention was very, very dubious, he said. 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. I was a barbarian in my college years at the University of the Philippines. [56][62][63][64] Dang claimed to have heard Dong Villadolid shouting at the top of his voice, saying they had raped and killed a certain Maria (presumed to be Maria Carmela Vizconde) and other persons. 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. 176864 People of the Philippines vs. Hubert Webb, et. 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. 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. 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. Of the 15 Justices, 7 voted for acquittal while four dissented and four Justices, including Carpio, did not participate.[27][28]. The court argued that the cited case has been superseded by Arizona v. Youngblood, "where the U.S. Supreme Court held that due process does not require the State to preserve the semen specimen although it might be useful to the accused unless the latter is able to show bad faith on the part of the prosecution or the police". [12] (Under Philippine law, generally, alibi is the weakest defense, especially where there is direct testimony of an eyewitness, duly corroborated by another. References: This policewoman is either ignorant of the law or plain lazy. 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. Those initially jailed for. This coincided with his passport and Philippine Immigration records but were dismissed by Tolentino due to belief that these documents can possibly be falsified. No two persons have the same DNA fingerprint, with the exception of identical twins.

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