CA affirms conviction of Venturina killers

The Court of Appeals has affirmed the conviction of five fraternity members who were found guilty of killing Dennis Venturina, a graduating public administration student and a candidate for honors, on December 8, 1994. In a 72-page decision, the CA’s Special Division of Five junked the petition filed by the five members of Scintilla Juris fraternity seeking the reversal of sentence of reclusion perpetua meted by the Quezon City regional trial court on February 29, 2002. The five were Danilo Feliciano, Jr., Julius Victor Medalla, Christopher Soliva, Warren Zingapan and Robert Michael Beltran Alvir, who were all from University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City. The five were convicted for attacking members of the Sigma Rho fraternity that resulted in Venturina’s death at the Beach House canteen inside the UP-Diliman campus while the victims were reportedly having lunch. The five frat men were found guilty of slight physical injuries charges filed by two other victims Leonardo Lachica and Cesar Mangrobang Jr., attempted murder filed by Mervin Natalicio and Arnel Fortes, and murder filed by Venturina’s family. The five reportedly used baseball bats and lead pipes in the crime. According to the CA ruling, the lower court correctly ruled in turning down the defense of alibi and denial utilized by the five accused. It also noted that there was no reason to doubt the testimonies of the victims and other witnesses who positively identified the attackers. “The alibis of each one did not absolutely negate the possibility that they could have been in the locus criminis (scene of the crime) at the time of the commission of the crime… The defense tried to muddle and confuse their testimonies with presumed inconsistencies but we find that the said witnesses were steadfast and unshaken in their testimonies implicating the accused appellants," the CA said. The CA, however, reduced the monetary award granted by the lower court to the family of Venturina from P5.41 million to P314,642 only, representing civil indemnity and actual, temperate, moral and exemplary damages. The appellants were directed to pay each of the victims, Lachica, Mangrobang Jr., and Cristobal Gaston, the amount of P35,000 as moral and exemplary damages for slight physical injuries they sustained during the attack; and P35,000 each for Natalicio and Fortes for attempted murder. The decision was penned by Presiding Justice Andres Reyes Jr. and concurred by Associate Justices Amelita Tolentino, Mariflor Punzalan-Castillo, and Jose Reyes. Associate Justice Stephen Cruz, meanwhile, dissented from the majority opinion. - KBK, GMANews.TV