the truth about vizconde massacre

In the Philippines in 1992, the Vizconde Massacre, which saw the murder of multiple women who had been stabbed to death, created an investigation full of problems. Tel: +(852) 2698 6339 She admitted to knowing Webb and company but denied knowledge of the Vizconde massacre, NBI Death Investigation Division head Romulo Asis said. Let the love of God prevail. 'Ms. Hello friends! [54] He was laid to rest at Manila Memorial Park Sucat on February 17. As a host of the program that carries my surname, I and my all-female staff have handled complaints from citizens, concerning abusive or arrogant policemen and other government functionaries. Rodolfo Sison, the police investigator originally assigned to the case in 1991. InAbadilla case: Both the RTC and the CA did not apply this test of credibility of a witness before accepting the testimony of Alejo. 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. The other defendants were Antonio Lejano II, Hospicio Fernandez, Michael Gatchalian, Miguel Rodriguez, Peter Estrada, Joey Filart and Artemio Ventura. TRUTH OUT, HEALING BEGINS. The Vizconde massacre made headlines in the Philippines in the '90s and started a trend in filmmaking. Lauro Vizconde on Thursday marks the 20th anniversary of the murders of his wife and two daughters at his residence in BF Homes, Paraaque City. TV-14. Conjectures and suspicions are not facts, hence, they have no evidentiary value. Anyone can be paid! This site uses cookies. 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. At the end of February, the Bureau of Fire Protection held a parade featuring some of its trucks and equipment as well as new regular personnel: women firefighters. 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. Rey and Jerry claimed they saw Webb playing basketball between the months of June and July 1991 during a league in BF Homes. It was based on the rule of the minority and not the majority as they (the SC justices) had enunciated in Fortich v. [10] According to the footage of the trial, Alfaro had been able to identify all the defendants by their names. Equal protection of the law is fundamental in the countrys Constitution. Policewoman Diaz even insulted Allan, saying he had no right to file the attempted rape complaint on behalf of the girl, because he was only the stepfather. 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. The SC identified the inconsistencies and the incredible facts in Alfaros testimony: her claim that Hubert Jeffrey Webb and Carmela Vizconde had a relationship; that Carmela had another lover whom she met just before Hubert came to her home and that she saw in open the five other accused taking turns in raping Carmela. Once again, the SCs applications of jurisprudence on the admissibility of forensic evidence in criminal trial have not been equally applied. On the contrary, it reopens it. Hence, it was not physically impossible for them to travel to Quezon City via the North Expressway at the time the crime took place; On Augusto Santos, the corroboration of his brother-in-law, Jonas Padel Ayhon, that he was at the Jose Fabella Hospital when the crime happened, the CA rejected his corroboration because he was not an impartial witness and ruled that where nothing supports the alibi than the testimony of a relative, it deserves scant consideration. I will be conferring with my lawyers about my future moves.. The trial began in August 1995 before Paraaque RTC Judge Amelita Tolentino. Eh di sana may sweldo ako. "[21], In April 2010, the Supreme Court approved DNA testing to be performed on the semen specimen obtained during autopsy from Carmela Vizconde. She also said that Bing was accosting Ging Rodriguez on why he had to stab and kill a young girl. The Vizconde murders remained unsolved for almost four years, until eyewitness Jessica Alfaro, a self-confessed former drug addict, came forward on April 28, 1995, to shed light on the massacre. Violent Vizconde Massacre | Crimes That Shocked Asia - YouTube G/F, 52 Princess Margaret Road Welcome to my maiden column in TheSTAR, now the countrys No. The SC required this test as necessary before a testimony of positive identification could be accepted as credible and with merit. The SC acquitted all the accused, reversing and dismissing the guilty verdict of the RTC and the CA. [57] The witnesses include an electrician, a drug dealer, a couple of neighborhood basketball players, a hairdresser and a village security guard. ), Among evidence that was not admitted by Judge Tolentino, was the note verbale from the United States Embassy in Manila claiming that Webb entered the United States in March 1991 and left in October 1992. People vs. Bello, G.R. [2] Two of the accused remain fugitives from the law: Joey Filart and Artemio Ventura. 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. [55], On June 28, 2011, Justice Secretary Leila De Lima said Hubert Webb was in the Philippines when the murders took place. 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. We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. On Vizconde Massacre, Hubert Webb and the Quest for True Justice (1st Carpio testified for the defense during the trial. God would be stupid to borrow Digongs words if He gifts him the vice presidency the second time around. 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. The lower courts, however, reasoned that "Webb's alibi cannot stand against Alfaro's positive identification of him." 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. She had been hanging around that agency for sometime as a stool pigeon, one paid for mixing up with criminals and squealing on them. One of the important pieces of evidence, which I presented to the court later, was the copy of an invoice issued to Hubert Webb on coincidence of coincidences! He also ordered the Secretary of Justice Leila de Lima to study the possibility of giving compensation to Webb and others. The details of how they were killed were grim. May I invite you to watch?). The unconstitutionality of prior restraint. 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. 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. 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. On August 11, 1999, the Regional Trial Court of Quezon City acquitted two of them and convicted the five others, now collectively known as the Abadilla Five. In the Vizconde case, the SC does not accept conjecture as the basis of its decision. The Villadolid brothers were mentioned by a certain Rhoda Pujanes alias Dang, who claimed she overheard Villadolid and his friends, including Miguel Rodriguez and Michael Gatchalian (both co-accused of Webb), talking about the massacre during a pot session in 1991. 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. June 30, 1991 for a bicycle he bought from a store in Orange County, Los Angeles, California. [29], The court said that "among the accused, Webb presented the strongest alibi". It cautioned itself from accepting the testimonies of witnesses without applying these tests. Apart from Alejo, earlier there was another witness, Merlito Herbas. It was Alejo who had positively identified Joel and Lorenzo (delos Santos) during a police line-up. 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. 3. Call 896 6000. [60] Mario, a hair stylist during the period June 1991, testified that Webb, along with Tony Boy Lejano and Dong Ventura had their haircut. 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. Given the financial resources and political influence of his family, it was not unlikely that Webb could have traveled back to the Philippines before June 2930, 1991 and then departed for the US again, and returning to the Philippines in October 1992. G.R. 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 Vizconde Massacre: God, Help Us! (1993) - IMDb 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. 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. This has resulted in the revelation by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) that they no longer had the specimens as these were remanded to the Paraaque courts. 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. VIZCONDE MASSACRE: After 20 Years | GMA News Online They are Lenido Lumanog, Augusto Santos, Senior Police Officer 2 (SPO2) Cesar Fortuna, Rameses de Jesus and Joel de Jesus. 176864), it became one of the most sensational cases in the Philippines, being described as a "trial of the century". With Romeo Vasquez, Elizabeth Oropesa, Robert Arevalo, Tommy Abuel. 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. The court rejected his testimony because he was a disgruntled witness. SC slams 'unbelievable' testimony of Vizconde massacre witness. On the night of June 29, 1991, Asuncion was supposed to have a sleepover with Jennifer at the latters home in Paraaque City. I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy. No. :Isumbongwill make a comeback on PTV-4 on June 12, 2021. Envy aliens who can avoid PH; pity Pinoys who are stuck here. But in the Abadilla case, the relatives and friends are not an impartial witness to corroborate the defence of alibi of the accused. After 15 years behind bars, Hubert Webb and 5 others in the Vizconde massacre case (Manila-Philippines) were released from prison on Tuesday. Both Webb and del Toro could not describe in court what Hubert's work was, Tolentino said. All of these had been applied in acquitting the accused in the Vizconde case, which is contradictory to its earlier decision affirming the conviction of the Abadilla Five. [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. But the grieving father couldn't distinguish the truth from the lies. Cruz, Manila accompanying his brother-in-law, Jonas Padel Ayhon, whose wife had just given birth; and Rameses de Jesus and Lenido Lumanog had just left Manila for Mabalacat, Pampanga where they stayed until the evening of June 14. Birrer said she had accompanied Biong to the Vizconde house to destroy the evidence and to retrieve Webb's jacket and the murder weapon. Eleazar, a strict disciplinarian, is probably the only PNP chief who is loved and respected by the citizenry. Hubert Webb - Wikipedia [12] On July 24, 1997, the Supreme Court noted that Tolentino erred when she refused to admit the 132 pieces of evidence presented by the defense, although these were later admitted in court through an order issued by Tolentino.[12][16]. The NBI is the agency responsible in providing security and protection of witnesses admitted under WPP. 187745. 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". 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. Massacre era. 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. Your subscription could not be saved. I became a villain in the eyes of the citizenry that was crying for blood; but I was steadfast. Webb was among the nine people convicted by Paranaque Regional Trial Court Branch 274 Presiding Judge Amelita Tolentino in January 2000 for the killings. It is time to heal the past. X' key to real perpetrators of Vizconde murders? Former Paraaque policeman Gerardo Biong was found guilty as an accessory for burning bedsheets and tampering with other evidence in the crime. 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. 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. During the trial, accused Webb made a defence of alibi claiming that he was in the United States when the massacre of the Vizcondes happened. [23] On November 26, 2010, Lauro Vizconde voiced his concern to media about the purported lobbying of Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio for the reversal of the guilty verdict. Kaya laban lang tayo. 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. 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. You are just a few clicks away from making The filming location took place in the actual home of the Vizconde's where the massacre took place on June 30, 1991. Firstly, like Alfaro, Alejo also received money and free accommodation from the persons who had interest in his testimony. I stood my ground because I had all the facts in my hand. SC acquits Hubert Webb, 6 others in Vizconde massacre 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. The men were released on Dec. 14 last year, after the Supreme Court dismissed the testimony of star witness Jessica Alfaro against Webb. [48] Other witnesses say Webb was in the Philippines at the time of the murders. Don't miss out on the latest news and information. Connections Followed by The Untold Story: Vizconde Massacre II - May the Lord Be with Us! 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. [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. Alfaro said Estrellita was killed before Webb began to rape Carmela. 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. The lower courts, the Supreme Court said, held that "Webb was actually in Paraaque when the Vizconde killings took place". [2][3] Estrellita Vizconde, 49, suffered thirteen stab wounds; Carmela Vizconde, 19, suffered seventeen stab wounds and had been raped before she was killed; and Anne Marie Jennifer, 6, had nineteen stab wounds. No. February 26, 2021. . Night of June 2930, 1991 Estrellita, Carmela and Jennifer Vizconde were killed in their Paraaque home; Carmela was found to have been raped. Secondly, Alfaros quality as a witness and her inconsistent, if not inherently unbelievable, testimony cannot be the positive identification that jurisprudence acknowledges as sufficient. The Vizconde Massacre | Shows | discovery+ Secondly, the SC affirmed the CAs assertion that Alejo was a credible witness ignoring the questions to his credibility by arguing that: positive and unequivocal declaration is sufficient to support a conviction for murder against appellants. The trial of the case having been long concluded, the requirements of the law may have been satisfied, but not the demands of justice. The Murder of an Entire Family While Dad Was Abroad for Work Former Paraaque City cop Gerardo Biong walked free from the New Bilibid Prisons (NBP) in Muntinlupa City after serving a 12-year sentence. Corona." [51] On March 18, Hubert Webb filed a lawsuit against Jessica Alfaro for false testimony at the Paraaque Prosecutor's Office. Estrellita, Carmela and Jennifer Vizconde. Hubert Webb of Vizconde Massacre Freed- Breaking News - theAsianparent Vizconde Massacre Case Digest - Philippine True Crime Stories - Anchor 176864. A news report on Thursday in Business Mirror that headlined Senate grills defense brass on plans for EDCA expansion, sites raised much curiosity for its sheer lack of detailed information. 132577 People of the Philippines vs. Hubert Jeffrey P. Webb, 1999, G.R. I stand by my story.

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