Philippine Supreme Court Jurisprudence


Philippine Supreme Court Jurisprudence > Year 1906 > December 1906 Decisions > G.R. No. L-3117 December 11, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. MACARIO ADRIATICO

007 Phil 187:




PHILIPPINE SUPREME COURT DECISIONS

FIRST DIVISION

[G.R. No. L-3117. December 11, 1906. ]

THE UNITED STATES, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. MACARIO ADRIATICO, Defendant-Appellant.

A. Barretto, for Appellant.

Solicitor-General Araneta, for Appellee.

SYLLABUS


"ESTAFA." — Held, That under the facts stated in the opinion the defendant was not guilty of the crime of estafa.


D E C I S I O N


MAPA, J. :


The defendant in this case is charged with the crime of estafa. The essential part of the charge, according to the complaint, is that the defendant secured from one Felix Lopez a loan of 3,500 pesos by means of false statements, representations, and promises, without which the latter would not have been the loan, to the great prejudice of the said Lopez, who had been unable to collect the said sum up to the date of the filing of the complaint.

The defendant was convicted of the said crime in the court below and sentenced to two years’ imprisonment at hard labor, from which said judgment he appealed to this court.

The Attorney-General in his brief sums up the facts as follows: "The defendant, for the purpose of securing money from Felix Lopez, for his, the defendant’s personal use, deceived the said Lopez: (1) By representing that the transaction was made in behalf of the estate of Ramon Valencia, of which he was the administrator, by stating to the said Lopez that as such administrator he needed money for the support of the minor heirs of the deceased, and that he borrowed the same on account of the administration of the said estate, knowing that such statements were false and that he was not authorized to borrow money for the estate, and that he would not bind the same; and (2) by offering to the said Lopez, in order to induce him to lend him the money, an option for the purchase of a house belonging to the said estate when the necessary authority therefore was secured by him, knowing that he could not make such a promise."cralaw virtua1aw library

As to the first point, while we do not intend to hold that, where the charge true, there would be present the deceit which characterizes the crime of estafa, as defined and penalized in paragraph 1 of article 535 of the Penal Code, cited by the Attorney-General as being applicable to the case at bar, there is no evidence that would justify the Attorney-General’s conclusion. The only thing that Lopez, according to his own statement, was told by the accused in reference to the matter was this: "The minors have asked me for money for their support, and I have no money belonging to the estate under my administration and he (the defendant) voluntarily promised to pay interest at the rate of ten per cent." The two promissory notes, one for 500 and the other for 3,000 pesos, contain the statement that the defendant borrowed the money as the judicial administrator of the estate of the deceased, Roman Valencia, to pay the expenses incurred in the course of administration. Neither verbally, nor by means of the said promissory notes, did the accused state to the said Felix Lopez that he, the accused, was authorized to borrow money for the estate, or that the said estate would be liable for the money so borrowed. If Lopez so understood it, it was his own fault, for the defendant told him nothing that could create such an impression in his mind. And further it has not been satisfactorily shown that the statements made by the defendant to the said Lopez were false. The only thing the defendant really told him was that he had not sufficient money belonging to the estate to meet the demands for money of the heirs of the deceased Ramon Valencia. The conversation in reference to this matter took place before the loans were secured, on the 2d and 5th of December, 1902. The defendant was appointed administrator of the estate on the 17th of October of that year, and up to the said month of December he had only collected as revenues of the estate the sum of 200 pesos. However, in the month of December he had already paid to the widow of Ramon Valencia, one of the parties interested in the estate, with the authority of the court, the sum of 1,260 pesos, as shown by the accounts appearing on pages 46, 53, and 54 of the record. Therefore it may be that what the defendant told Lopez when he negotiated these loans on the dates aforesaid was true, particularly because, as has already been said, there is no affirmative proof to the contrary.

Whether the defendant did or did not, as a matter of fact, apply all the money borrowed from Lopez to the expenses of the estate, assuming that he borrowed that money for this particular purpose, is not necessary for us to inquire, in view of the fact that all this took place subsequent to the borrowing of the money; and whatever opinion might be entertained as to the conduct of the defendant in connection with this matter, assuming that the charge is true, it can not be said that his acts constituted a deceit in order to obtain the money, for it is obvious that in order to be considered as such, it should be prior to, or simultaneous with the loan — we refer to the deceit, that is to say, the fiction or representation alleged to the deceitful.

As to the second point, namely, that the promise made by the defendant to Lopez to give him preference in the event that he should be duly authorized to sell the house on Calle Arlegui, if they agreed on the price, this also seems to have been made subsequent to the borrowing of the money. It at least may be so inferred from the following extract from the testimony of Lopez:jgc:chanrobles.com.ph

"Q. Have you ever had a conversation with him (the accused) since the loan was made?

"A. The only conversation we had was that when he secured the necessary authority he would sell the house, giving me preference in the sale if I wished to buy it, and we could agree on the price.

This, together with the fact that nowhere in his testimony did Lopez say that this conversation took place before the money was loaned, seems to clearly indicate that the conversation occurred after the loan was made, for the word since which appears in the question to Lopez refers to a time subsequent to the loan.

In any event, it seems to us that the assertion made by the Attorney-General in his brief to the effect that the defendant knew very well that he could not make such a promise, is doubtful and questionable. Section 722 of the Code of Procedure in Civil Actions provides, in paragraph 5 thereof, that the court may authorize the executor or administrator of an estate to sell "such part of the estate as is deemed necessary, either at public or private sale, as would be most beneficial to all parties concerned . . .," and we know of no provision of law which expressly prohibits the administrator, in case the property is sold at private sale, to give preference, under the same conditions, to a particular purchaser.

The judgment of the court below is accordingly hereby reversed, and the defendant acquitted, with the costs of both instances de oficio. After the expiration of ten days let judgment be entered in accordance herewith and the case be remanded to the court below for execution. So ordered.

Arellano, C.J., Torres, Johnson, Carson, Willard, and Tracey, JJ., concur.




Back to Home | Back to Main




















chanrobles.com





ChanRobles On-Line Bar Review

ChanRobles Internet Bar Review : www.chanroblesbar.com

ChanRobles MCLE On-line

ChanRobles Lawnet Inc. - ChanRobles MCLE On-line : www.chanroblesmcleonline.com






December-1906 Jurisprudence                 

  • G.R. No. L-2242 December 1, 1906 - HOUSTON B. PAROT v. CARLOS GEMORA

    007 Phil 94

  • G.R. No. L-2530 December 3, 1906 - ORDER OF DOMINICANS v. INSULAR GOVERNMENT

    007 Phil 98

  • G.R. No. L-2718 December 4, 1906 - JOSE EMETERIO GUEVARA v. HIPOLITO DE OCAMPO

    007 Phil 104

  • G.R. No. 2800 December 4, 1906 - FRANK S. BOURNS v. D.M. CARMAN ET AL.

    007 Phil 117

  • G.R. No. L-2923 December 4, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. PEDRO PALMADRES

    007 Phil 120

  • G.R. No. L-3009 December 4, 1906 - FELICIDAD BUSTAMANTE v. CRISTOBAL BUSTAMANTE

    007 Phil 125

  • G.R. No. L-3534 December 4, 1906 - TO GUIOC-CO v. LORENZO DEL ROSARIO

    007 Phil 126

  • G.R. No. L-2671 December 5, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. VICTORIANO POBLETE

    007 Phil 127

  • G.R. No. L-2704 December 6, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. FEDERICO ORTIZ, ET AL.

    008 Phil 752

  • G.R. No. L-1952 December 6, 1906 - CARLOS GSELL v. VALERIANO VELOSO YAP-JUE

    007 Phil 130

  • G.R. No. L-2746 December 6, 1906 - MATEO CARIÑO v. TINSULAR GOVERNMENT

    007 Phil 132

  • G.R. No. L-2921 December 6, 1906 - LUCAS GONZALEZ v. ROSENDO DEL ROSARIO

    007 Phil 140

  • G.R. No. L-3022 December 6, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. SEBASTIAN LOZANO

    007 Phil 142

  • G.R. No. L-3429 December 6, 1906 - CASTLE BROS. v. GO-JUNO

    007 Phil 144

  • G.R. Nos. L-2472 & 2473 December 7, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. TOMAS CORTES

    007 Phil 149

  • G.R. No. L-2803 December 7, 1906 - DAMASA ALCALA v. FRANCISCO SALGADO

    007 Phil 151

  • G.R. No. L-2890 December 7, 1906 - VALENTINA PALMA v. JORGE FERNANDEZ, ET AL.

    007 Phil 154

  • G.R. No. L-2929 December 7, 1906 - FAUSTA BATARRA v. FRANCISCO MARCOS

    007 Phil 156

  • G.R. No. L-3006 December 7, 1906 - JOSE GONZALEZ v. AGUSTIN BAÑES

    007 Phil 158

  • G.R. No. L-3062 December 7, 1906 - MARIA MAGALLANES v. TEODORA CAÑETA

    007 Phil 161

  • G.R. No. L-3078 December 7, 1906 - FERNANDO PEREZ v. JUAN GARCIA BOSQUE

    007 Phil 162

  • G.R. No. L-3495 December 7, 1906 - JAMES J. RAFFERTY v. JUDGE OF THE CFI FOR THE PROV. OF CEBU, ET AL.

    007 Phil 164

  • G.R. No. L-2777 December 10, 1906 - MARIA CASAL v. EMILIO MORETA

    007 Phil 169

  • G.R. No. L-2532 December 11, 1906 - IN RE MACARIO ADRIOATICO

    007 Phil 173

  • G.R. No. L-2787 December 11, 1906 - CELSO DAYRIT v. GIL GONZALEZ

    007 Phil 182

  • G.R. No. L-3010 December 11, 1906 - JULIAN TUBUCON v. PETRONA DALISAY

    007 Phil 183

  • G.R. No. L-3050 December 11, 1906 - LUIS SANTOS v. SILVESTRE DILAG

    007 Phil 185

  • G.R. No. L-3117 December 11, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. MACARIO ADRIATICO

    007 Phil 187

  • G.R. No. L-2766 December 12, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. PAULO CABAMNGAN

    007 Phil 191

  • G.R. No. L-3094 December 12, 1906 - FRED SPARREVOHN v. EMIL M. BACHRACH

    007 Phil 194

  • G.R. No. L-2828 December 14, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. JUAN SOLIS

    007 Phil 195

  • G.R. No. L-3204 December 17, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. FLAVIANO SALANATIN

    007 Phil 199

  • G.R. No. L-2855 December 19, 1906 - FLEMING, ET AL. v. LORCHA "NUESTRA SRA. DEL CARMEN

    007 Phil 200

  • G.R. No. L-2757 December 20, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. CHAN LIM ALAN

    007 Phil 203

  • G.R. No. L-2908 December 20, 1906 - ANTONIO TORRES Y ROXAS, ET AL. v. RAMON B. GENATO (Intervenor)

    007 Phil 204

  • G.R. No. L-3119 December 20, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. ESTANISLAO CAGAOAAN

    007 Phil 207

  • G.R. No. L-3093 December 22, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. REGINO MANABAT

    007 Phil 209

  • G.R. No. L-2541 December 26, 1906 - IGNACIO ICAZA v. RICARDO FLORES

    007 Phil 211

  • G.R. No. L-1999 December 27, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. VICENTE MANUEL

    007 Phil 221

  • G.R. No. L-2765 December 27, 1906 - JOSE DOLIENDO v. DOMINGO BIARNESA

    007 Phil 232

  • G.R. No. L-3249 December 28, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. JOSE FLOR MATA

    007 Phil 235

  • G.R. No. L-2395 December 29, 1906 - DOROTEO CORTES v. DY-JIA AND DY-CHUANDING

    007 Phil 238

  • G.R. No. L-2825 December 29, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. PAUL A. WEEMS

    007 Phil 241

  • G.R. No. L-2916 December 29, 1906 - UNITED STATES v. VICENTE OROSA

    007 Phil 247

  • G.R. No. L-2966 December 29, 1906 - NICOLAS CONCEPCION TAN TACO v. VICENTE GAY

    007 Phil 252

  • G.R. No. L-3120 December 29, 1906 - BRYAN v. AMERICAN BANK

    007 Phil 255

  • G.R. No. L-3466 December 29, 1906 - MEYER HERMAN v. A. S. CROSSFIELD

    007 Phil 259