Republic of the Philippines watercraft used for transport of passengers and cargo from one place to another

SUPREME COURT through Philippine waters. It shall include all kinds and types of vessels or boats
Manila used in fishing (emphasis supplied).

FIRST DIVISION On the other hand, grave coercion as defined in Art. 286 of the Revised Penal
Code is committed by "any person who, without authority of law, shall, by means
of violence, prevent another from doing something not prohibited by law, or compel
him to do something against his will, whether it be right or wrong."
G.R. No. 118075 September 5, 1997
Accused-appellant argues that in order that piracy may be committed it is essential
PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, plaintiff-appellee, that there be an attack on or seizure of a vessel. He claims that he and his
vs. companion did not attack or seize the fishing boat of the Pilapil brothers by using
EMILIANO CATANTAN y TAYONG, accused-appellant. force or intimidation but merely boarded the boat, and it was only when they were
already on board that they used force to compel the Pilapils to take them to some
other place. Appellant also insists that he and Ursal had no intention of
BELLOSILLO, J.: permanently taking possession or depriving complainants of their boat. As a matter
of fact, when they saw another pumpboat they ordered the brothers right away to
EMILIANO CATANTAN and JOSE MACVEN URSAL alias "Bimbo" were charged approach that boat so they could leave the Pilapils behind in their boat.
with violation of PD No. 532 otherwise known as the Anti-Piracy and Highway Accordingly, appellant claims, he simply committed grave coercion and not piracy.
Robbery Law of 1974 for having on 27 June 1993, while armed with a firearm and
a bladed weapon, acting in conspiracy with one another, by means of violence and We do not agree. Under the definition of piracy in PD No. 532 as well as grave
intimidation, wilfully and feloniously attacked, assaulted and inflicted physical coercion as penalized in Art. 286 of the Revised Penal Code, this case falls
injuries on Eugene Pilapil and Juan Pilapil Jr. who were then fishing in the squarely within the purview of piracy. While it may be true that Eugene and Juan
seawaters of Tabogon, Cebu, and seized their fishing boat, to their damage and Jr. were compelled to go elsewhere other than their place of destination, such
prejudice.1 compulsion was obviously part of the act of seizing their boat. The testimony of
Eugene, one of the victims, shows that the appellant actually seized the vessel
The Regional Trial Court of Cebu, after trial, found both accused Emiliano Catantan through force and intimidation. The direct testimony of Eugene is significant and
y Tayong and Jose Macven Ursal alias "Bimbo" guilty of the crime charged and enlightening —
sentenced them to reclusion perpetua.2 Of the duo only Emiliano Catantan
appealed. Q: Now, while you and your younger brother were fishing at the seawaters
of Tabogon at that time, was there anything unusual that happened?
In his appeal, accused Catantan contends that the trial court erred in convicting
him of piracy as the facts proved only constitute grave coercion defined in Art. 286 A: Yes.
of the Revised Penal Code and not piracy under PD No. 532.
Q: Will you please tell the Court what that was?
The evidence for the prosecution is that at 3:00 o'clock in the morning of 27 June
1993, the Pilapil brothers Eugene, 21, and Juan Jr., 18, were fishing in the sea A: While we were fishing at Tabogon another pumpboat arrived and the
some 3 kilometers away from the shores of Tabogon, Cebu. Suddenly, another passengers of that pumpboat boarded our pumpboat.
boat caught up with them. One of them, later identified as the accused Emiliano
Catantan, bearded the pump boat of the Pilapils and leveled his gun at Eugene. Q: Now, that pumpboat which you said approached you, how many were
With his gun, Catantan struck Eugene on the left cheekbone and ordered him and riding in that pumpboat?
Juan Jr. to "dapa."3 Then Catantan told Ursal to follow him to the pumpboat of the
Pilapils. There they hogtied Eugene, forced him to lie down at the bottom of the A: Four.
boat, covered him with a tarpaulin up to his neck, stepped on him and ordered
Juan Jr. to ferry them to Daan Tabogon. They left behind the other pumpboat which Q: When you said the passengers of that pumpboat boarded your
the accused had earlier used together with its passengers one of whom was visibly pumpboat, how did they do that?
tied.
A: They approached somewhat suddenly and came aboard the pumpboat
Noting that they were already far out into the sea, Eugene reminded Catantan that (emphasis supplied).
they were now off-course but Catantan told Eugene to keep quiet or he would be
killed. Later, the engine conked out and Juan Jr. was directed to row the boat. Q: How many suddenly came aboard your pumpboat?
Eugene asked to be set free so he could help but was not allowed; he was
threatened with bodily harm instead. A: Only one.

Meanwhile Juan Jr. managed to fix the engine, but as they went farther out into Q: What did that person do when he came aboard your pumpboat?
the open sea the engine stalled again. This time Eugene was allowed to assist his
brother. Eugene's hands were set free but his legs were tied to the outrigger. At A: When he boarded our pumpboat he aimed his revolver at us (emphasis
the point of a tres cantos4 held by Ursal, Eugene helped row the boat. supplied).

As they passed the shoreline of Nipa, they saw another boat. Catantan asked Q: By the way, when he aimed his revolver to you, did he say anything to
whose boat that was and the Pilapils told him that it was operated by a certain you?
Juanito and that its engine was new. Upon learning this, Catantan ordered the
Pilapil brothers to approach the boat cautioning them however not to move or say xxx xxx xxx
anything.
A: He said, "dapa," which means lie down (emphasis supplied).
On the pretext that they were buying fish Catantan boarded the "new" pumpboat.
Once aboard he ordered the operator Juanito to take them to Mungaz, another COURT:
town of Cebu. When Juanito tried to beg-off by saying that he would still pull up his
net and harvest his catch, Catantan drew his revolver and said, "You choose Q: To whom did he aim that revolver?
between the two, or I will kill you."5 Juanito, obviously terrified, immediately obeyed
and Ursal hopped in from the other pumpboat and joined Catantan. A: He aimed the revolver on me.

But, as Ursal was transferring to the "new" pumpboat, its outrigger caught the front TRIAL PROS. ECHAVEZ:
part of the pumpboat of the Pilapils so he kicked hard its prow; it broke. The jolt
threw Eugene into the sea and he landed on the water headlong. Juan Jr. then Q: What else did he do?
untied his brother's legs and the two swam together clinging to their boat.
Fortunately another pumpboat passed by and towed them safely ashore. A: Then he ordered his companion to come aboard the pumpboat.

Section 2, par. (d), of PD No. 532, defines piracy as "any attack upon or seizure of Q: What did he do with his revolver?
any vessel, or the taking away of the whole or part thereof or its cargo, equipment,
or the personal belongings of the complement or passengers, irrespective of the A: He struck my face with the revolver, hitting the lower portion of my left
value thereof, by means of violence against or intimidation of persons or force upon eye.
things, committed by any person, including a passenger or member of the
complement of said vessel, in Philippine waters, shall be considered as piracy. The Q: Now, after you were struck with the revolver, what did these persons
offenders shall be considered as pirates and punished as hereinafter provided." do?
And a vessel is construed in Sec. 2, par. (b), of the same decree as "any vessel or

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A: We were ordered to take them to a certain place.

Q: To what place did he order you to go?

A: To Daan Tabogon. 6

To sustain the defense and convert this case of piracy into one of grave coercion
would be to ignore the fact that a fishing vessel cruising in Philippine waters was
seized by the accused by means of violence against or intimidation of persons. As
Eugene Pilapil testified, the accused suddenly approached them and boarded their
pumpboat and Catantan aimed his revolver at them as he ordered complaining
witness Eugene Pilapil to "dapa" or lie down with face downwards, and then struck
his face with a revolver, hitting the lower portion of his left eye, after which,
Catantan told his victims at gun point to take them to Daan Tabogon.

The incident happened at 3:00 o'clock in the morning. The sudden appearance of
another pumpboat with four passengers, all strangers to them, easily intimidated
the Pilapil brothers that they were impelled to submit in complete surrender to the
marauders. The moment Catantan jumped into the other pumpboat he had full
control of his victims. The sight of a drawn revolver in his hand drove them to
submission. Hence the issuance of PD No. 532 designed to avert situations like
the case at bar and discourage and prevent piracy in Philippine waters. Thus we
cite the succeeding "whereas" clauses of the decree —

Whereas, reports from law-enforcement agencies reveal that lawless elements are
still committing acts of depredations upon the persons and properties of innocent
and defenseless inhabitants who travel from one place to another, thereby
disturbing the peace, order and tranquility of the nation and stunting the economic
and social progress of the people;

Whereas, such acts of depredations constitute either piracy or highway

Whereas, it is imperative that said lawless elements be discouraged from

The Pilapil brothers are mere fisherfolk whose only means of livelihood is fishing
in sea waters. They brave the natural elements and contend with the unknown
forces of the sea to bring home a bountiful harvest. It is on these small fishermen
that the townspeople depend for the daily bread. To impede their livelihood would
be to deprive them of their very subsistence, and the likes of the accused within
the purview of PD No. 532 are the obstacle to the "economic, social, educational
and community progress of the people." Had it not been for the chance passing of
another pumpboat, the fate of the Pilapil brothers, left alone helpless in a
floundering, meandering outrigger with a broken prow and a conked-out engine in
open sea, could not be ascertained.

While appellant insists that he and Ursal had no intention of depriving the Pilapils
permanently of their boat, proof of which they left behind the brothers with their
boat, the truth is, Catantan and Ursal abandoned the Pilapils only because their
pumpboat broke down and it was necessary to transfer to another pumpboat that
would take them back to their lair. Unfortunately for the pirates their "new"
pumpboat ran out of gas so they were apprehended by the police soon after the
Pilapils reported the matter to the local authorities.

The fact that the revolver used by the appellant to seize the boat was not produced
in evidence cannot exculpate him from the crime. The fact remains, and we state
it again, that Catantan and his co-accused Ursal seized through force and
intimidation the pumpboat of the Pilapils while the latter were fishing in Philippine
waters.

WHEREFORE, finding no reversible error in the decision appealed from, the

SO ORDERED.

Vitug, Kapunan and Hermosisima Jr., JJ., concur.

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