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PEOPLE vs. Rico Jamlan Salem

PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, vs. RICO JAMLAN SALEM, accused-appellant.

G.R. No. 118946 | 1997-10-16

D E C I S I O N

BELLOSILLO, J:

RICO JAMLAN SALEM was charged with and found guilty of rape and sentenced to reclusion perpetua with all its accessory penalties, and to indemnify his victim Mirasol D. Sabellano the sum of 50,000.00 without subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency. Salem now comes to us for review of his conviction.

Rape, from its very nature, is a crime which is normally committed when nobody else is around; hence, the testimony of the offended party must be received with great caution. The story of the offended party, which the court must scrutinize, is that on 13 August 1994, at seven o'clock in the evening,...