People v. Ng Pek
REITERATIONFacts
The Antecedents: The appellant, Ng Pek, was accused of attempted bribery. The information alleged that on September 23, 1947, in Manila, he willfully, unlawfully, and feloniously offered and delivered P1.00 to Patrolman M. Garcia to dissuade him from arresting the accused for a violation of City Ordinance No. 2646 and filing charges. It was further alleged that the accused did not perform all acts of execution which should have produced the crime of bribery due to a cause other than his own voluntary desistance, specifically because the police officer did not allow himself to be corrupted. Procedural History: In the Court of First Instance of Manila, the appellant pleaded guilty to the charge of attempted bribery. He was sentenced to suffer two months and one day of arresto mayor, a fine of P3, with subsidiary imprisonment in case of insolvency, and to pay the costs. The Petition: The appellant appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that the lower court erred in considering his statement during arraignment as a plea of guilty and in sentencing him immediately without giving him a chance to defend himself.
Issue(s)
Whether the trial court erred in considering the appellant's manifestation as a plea of guilty and sentencing him without trial. Whether the crime committed was attempted, frustrated, or consummated corruption of a public official for purposes of penalty imposition.
Ruling
The Supreme Court affirmed the conviction but modified the penalty. The Court held that the crime committed was attempted corruption of a public official and sentenced the appellant to six months and one day of destierro.
Ratio Decidendi
On Issue 1: The Supreme Court held that the appellant's contention regarding the interpretation of his plea was based on allegations of fact not proven during the trial and absent from the record. The official record clearly shows that on November 3, 1947, the accused voluntarily waived his right to counsel and entered a formal plea of guilty to the charge of attempted bribery. Under Philippine procedural rules, a plea of guilty is an unconditional admission of all the material allegations in the information. This admission necessarily forecloses the right of the accused to present a defense on the merits of the case. Since the plea left the trial court with no other alternative but to impose the penalty prescribed by law, the second assignment of error regarding the lack of opportunity to defend is likewise meritless. The trial court acted within its authority in proceeding directly to sentencing after the admission of guilt. On Issue 2: The Court ruled that the crime committed was 'attempted' corruption of a public official under Article 212 in relation to Article 210 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC). The Court noted an ambiguity in the information, which alleged both the 'delivery' of money and that the accused 'did not perform all acts of execution' because the officer refused the bribe. Resolving this ambiguity in favor of the accused, the Court applied the 'uniform holding' established in precedents like U.S. v. Te Tong (26 Phil. 453). These cases establish that if a public officer refuses to be corrupted, the crime remains in the attempted stage, regardless of whether the gift was actually delivered. Consequently, the penalty must be two degrees lower than that prescribed for the consummated felony pursuant to Article 51 of the RPC. Since the consummated penalty is arresto mayor in its medium and maximum periods, a two-degree reduction under Article 71 of the RPC results in the penalty of destierro (banishment) in its minimum and medium periods. Therefore, the prison sentence was modified to six months and one day of destierro.
Main Doctrine
The crime of attempted corruption of a public official is committed when the accused offers and delivers money to a public officer with the intent to corrupt him, but the officer refuses to be corrupted. The penalty for attempted corruption of a public official should be two degrees lower than that prescribed for the consummated crime.