WHEREAS,
findings of the police and intelligence agencies of the government
reveal that fires and other crimes involving destruction in Metro
Manila and other urban centers in the country are being perpetrated by
criminal syndicates, some of which have foreign connections; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, the current law on arson suffers from certain inadequacies
that impede the successful enforcement and prosecution of
arsonists; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, it is imperative that the high incidence of fires and other
crimes involving destruction be prevented to protect the national
economy and preserve the social, economic and political stability of
the country.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines,
by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution, do hereby
order and decree as part of the law of the land, the following: chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 1. Arson. — Any person who burns or sets fire
to the property of another shall be punished by Prision Mayor.
The same penalty shall be imposed when a person sets fire to his own
property under circumstances which expose to danger the life or
property of another.
Section 2. Destructive Arson. — The penalty of
Reclusion Temporal in its maximum period to Reclusion Perpetua shall be
imposed if the property burned is any of the following:cralaw:red
1. Any ammunition factory and other establishment
where explosives, inflammable or combustible materials are
stored. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
2. Any archive, museum, whether public or private, or
any edifice devoted to culture, education or social services. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
3. Any church or place of worship or other building
where people usually assemble.
4. Any train,rplane or anyrcraft, vessel or
watercraft, or conveyance for transportation of persons or property.
5. Any building where evidence is kept for use in any
legislative, judicial, administrative or other official proceedings.
6. Any hospital, hotel, dormitory, lodging house,
housing tenement, shopping center, public or private market, theater or
movie house or any similar place or building.
7. Any building, whether used as a dwelling or not,
situated in a populated or congested area.
Section 3. Other Cases of Arson. — The penalty of
Reclusion Temporal to Reclusion Perpetua shall be imposed if the
property burned is any of the following:cralaw:red
1. Any building used as offices of the government or
any of its agencies;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
2. Any inhabited house or dwelling;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
3. Any industrial establishment, shipyard, oil well
or mine shaft, platform or tunnel;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
4. Any plantation, farm, pastureland, growing crop,
grain field, orchard, bamboo grove or forest;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
5. Any rice mill, sugar mill, cane mill or mill
central; and
6. Any railway or bus station,rport, wharf or
warehouse. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 4. Special Aggravating Circumstances in
Arson. — The penalty in any case of arson shall be imposed in its
maximum period;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
1. If committed with intent to gain;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
2. If committed for the benefit of another;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
3. If the offender is motivated by spite or hatred
towards the owner or occupant of the property burned;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
4. If committed by a syndicate.
The offense is committed by a syndicate if its is planned or carried
out by a group of three (3) or more persons.
Section 5. Where Death Results from Arson. — If by
reason of or on the occasion of the arson death results, the penalty of
Reclusion Perpetua to death shall be imposed.
Section 6. Prima Facie evidence of Arson. — Any of
the following circumstances shall constitute prima facie evidence of
arson:cralaw:red
1. If the fire started simultaneously in more than
one part of the building or establishment.
2. If substantial amount of flammable substances or
materials are stored within the building note necessary in the business
of the offender nor for household use.
3. If gasoline, kerosene, petroleum or other
flammable or combustible substances or materials soaked therewith or
containers thereof, or any mechanical, electrical, chemical, or
electronic contrivance designed to start a fire, or ashes or traces of
any of the foregoing are found in the ruins or premises of the burned
building or property.
4. If the building or property is insured for
substantially more than its actual value at the time of the issuance of
the policy.
5. If during the lifetime of the corresponding fire
insurance policy more than two fires have occurred in the same or other
premises owned or under the control of the offender and/or insured.
6. If shortly before the fire, a substantial portion
of the effects insured and stored in a building or property had been
withdrawn from the premises except in the ordinary course of business.
7. If a demand for money or other valuable
consideration was made before the fire in exchange for the desistance
of the offender or for the safety of the person or property of the
victim.
Section 7. Conspiracy to commit Arson. — Conspiracy
to commit arson shall be punished by Prision Mayor in its minimum
period.
Section 8. Confiscation of Object of Arson. — The
building which is the object of arson including the land on which it is
situated shall be confiscated and escheated to the State, unless the
owner thereof can prove that he has no participation in nor knowledge
of such arson despite the exercise of due diligence on his part.
Section 9. Repealing Clause. — The provisions of
Articles 320 to 326-B of the Revised Penal Code and all laws, executive
orders, rules and regulations, or parts thereof, inconsistent with the
provisions of this Decree are hereby repealed or amended accordingly.
Section 10. Effectivity. — This Decree shall take
effect immediately upon publication thereof at least once in a
newspaper of general circulation.
Done in the City of Manila,
this 7th day of March, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and
seventy-nine.
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