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People, Plaintiff-Appellee Vs. Rene Tapales Y Sumulong, Accused-Appeellant

PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee vs. RENE TAPALES y SUMULONG, accused-appellant

G.R. No. 125808 | 1999-09-03

D E C I S I O N

BELLOSILLO, J.:

Circumstantial evidence, or testimony not based on actual personal knowledge or observation of the facts in the controversy but of other facts from which deductions are drawn,[1] must be weighed and acted upon with extreme caution, particularly when the crime for which the accused stands to be convicted of is a heinous crime that carries with it the supreme penalty of death.[2]

At around 6:00 in the morning of 20 January 1995 the lifeless body of Mildred Calip was found sprawled on a grassy portion of the western shoulder of Lira Street, Lores Country Homes, Antipolo, Rizal, some 110 to 120 meters away...