PEOPLE V DULAY

MAY GAHD, I H8 DRAGS:

Lino the accused was caught in a buy-bust operation. An informant and police Guadamor as poseurbuyer transacted with him. During the trial, only the police team were presented to testify, and not the
informant. Lino says the prosecution failed to prove his guilty because the informant was not presented
to corroborate the statements of the police. Court says the informant need not be presented as a
witness. It is up to the prosecution to present the informant depending on his assessment and
credibility. Informants are also not usually asked to testify to keep them safe. Court convicted him of
selling and using shabu.
Facts:
Two informations were filed against accused (alias Lino) for selling on separate occasions 0.02 grams
of and using Shabu. A buy-bust operation was conducted against accused on Sept. 23, 2003 due to a
report given by an informant to the Brgy. Captain. The report was about the illegal drug-selling activity of
the accused in Mabini Street, Makati. The brgy captain coordinated with the Makati Drug Enforcement
Unit (DEU). The informant was with them during the same operation. Informant and poseur buyer
(Police Guadamor) approached the accused and asked to the latter to give an equivalent amount of
shabu in exchange for 200php. When the signal was given (yosi lighting), they arrested the accused
and introduced themselves and informed him of his constitutional rights. The drug sachets were marked
and Lino was taken to the police for questioning and drug testing.
Defendants version: He was sleeping in their (with his wife) house when the wife woke him up because
there was a knocking on the door. He saw three men, and he was asked if he was Allan, and he said
no. He was suddenly taken from his house and these three men brought him to the police. He claims
that he was framed (planting of evidence in his person).
He was convicted of the crimes charged against him.
In his appeal, Lino claims that the prosecution failed to prove his guilty beyond reasonable doubt
because the police who was part of the buy-bust team (police Barbosa) failed to identify him at trial.
Also, said officer and another teammate (police Robles) could not have seen him at a distance of 10-15
meters. The informant was not presented during trial, and thus, was not able to corroborate evidence.
Issue: W/N Lino was guilty beyond reasonable doubt
Held: YES
Accused did not have much to say about the poseur-buyers testimony. He was able to give a
complete account of the whole transaction. The trial court found his testimony to be credible.
The defect of Barbosas testimony was cured when accused testified that Barbosa was indeed a part
of the buy-bust team. Accused pointed at this police during the trial, and cannot assert that Barbosa
was not a teammember.
The fact that Barbosa and Robles were identified by the accused during trial negates his defense that
these two could not have seen his face during the buy bust operation.
Accused says that the prosecution failed to present the informant in court, and said informant should
have corroborated the testimony of Guadamor.
Court says NO. The presence of the informant during trial is dispensable in drug cases.
It is up to the prosecution to determine who should be presented as witnesses on the basis of its
own assessment of their necessity. After all, the testimony of a single witness, if trustworthy and
reliable, or if credible and positive, would be sufficient to support a conviction. Moreover, in
determining values and credibility of evidence, witnesses are to be weighed, not numbered.
Furthermore, informants are often not presented in court in order to preserve their cover and
continue to be of service as such. Their lives may also be placed in danger if they testify in court.
The police rarely remove the cloak of confidentiality with which they surround their poseurbuyers
and informers since their usefulness will be over the moment they are presented in court. Moreover,
drug dealers do not look kindly upon squealers and informants. It is understandable why, as much
as permitted, their identities are kept secret.