CEBU CITY -- The court on Monday convicted two men for the killing of a nursing student, who was just three weeks away from graduation, because they wanted to grab her phone.
Judge Ramon Daomi-las also ordered the two to pay P472,800 to the family of Ruby Jade Ruba, whom they robbed along Gov. Roa St. in Barangay Capitol Site, Cebu City, in March 2008.
Aivan Barabat and Mark Anthony Gabriel will spend 20 to 40 years in jail.
Judge Daomilas of the Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 11 cleared a third suspect, Karl Marx Carticiano, for lack of evidence that he participated in the robbery-homicide.
In his 42-page decision, the judge said he repeatedly watched the video footage of a television news team's interview with Barabat and Gabriel, and found their answers "voluntarily and spontaneous."
He tried "to see if there was even a slight trace of fear or pressure on both accused, but there is none."
"The admission of both accused, made openly before the media, can be given credence. There was no showing that the media was controlled by the police in terms of questions asked," he said.
Judge Daomilas also ordered both convicts to pay the victim's family P75,000 for civil indemnity for her death; P75,000 for moral damages; P75,000 for exemplary damages and P247,800 for the funeral expenses.
"Justice is finally served," said Vicente Ruba, whose daughter, 20, was gunned down while texting outside a friend's boarding house last March 6, 2008.
Family members and friends of Ruby Jade filled the RTC Branch 11 courtroom. They waited more than two hours for the reading of the verdict scheduled at 3 p.m.
Before the arraignment, Barabat, Gabriel and Carticiano, who sat on the bench reserved for the accused, appeared relaxed. Their family members were also in the courtroom.
When the guilty verdict was handed down past 5 p.m., Barabat and Gabriel returned to their seats.
The victim's parents, Vicente and Margie Ruba, cheered along with relatives and their daughter's friends.
But when Carticiano's acquittal was announced, it was his family that broke down and hugged him. Carticiano then went to the bench where Barabat and Gabriel sat, and tapped their shoulders.
The victim's father, Vicente, said he accepted the court ruling. Her mother, Margie, said that while she was relieved by the conviction, she wished all three suspects had been convicted.
Prosecution lawyer Rameses Villagonzalo said while they were expecting the conviction of the three accused, he said seeing the convicts in jail would somehow give his clients some relief.
Sought for his reaction, Noel Archival, counsel for Barabat, said in a text message: "We have read carefully the decision and found out that the judge studied the facts and the law that led to the conviction of our client."
But "in convicting the accused, there are now two victims," Archival said. The defense will file a motion for reconsideration.
In their defense, Barabat and Gabriel had said that police investigators tortured and forced them to admit to the crime.
The prosecution presented nine witnesses.
One of them, Rex Ivan Mangapis, testified he was walking with his friends along Escario St., Cebu City to buy beer when they heard a woman screaming, followed by a gunshot.
Moments later, Managpis said they saw a man carrying a revolver board a motorcycle and drive away.
Another witness said Ruby Jade was shot in the wrist and chest.
The prosecution presented seven more witnesses before it rested its case.
The defense presented 15 witnesses, including Carticiano, Barabat and Gabriel.
Carticiano denied any involvement in the crime. He said he had no idea he was implicated in the case until his mother called to tell him that policemen were looking for him.
Carticiano said he and his friends were playing computer games at the barangay hall from 11 p.m. to midnight last March 6, 2008. He admitted Gabriel and Barabat are his friends.
Gabriel told the court he was at home when Ruba was shot. Police investigators, he alleged, mauled him so he would admit to the crime.
Barabat echoed Gabriel's defense, saying he did not even know the victim. He said authorities forced him to own up to the crime by hitting him.
After presenting 12 more witnesses, the defense also rested its case. The police, too, welcomed the convictions.
"With persistence, despite the lack of equipment, the police were able to do their job right," said Senior Superintendent Patrocinio Comendador, who was the chief of the Cebu City Police Office when the robbery-slay happened.
Comendador, who now serves as the chief of the Regional Investigation and Detective Management Division, hopes the police will learn a lesson from Ruba case in the conduct of an investigation, particularly in getting witnesses and gathering evidence.
Chief Inspector George Ylanan, City Investigation and Detective Management Branch chief, said the Ruba case is the first robbery-homicide in recent years where the police secured a conviction.
"Personally, I feel vindicated that our efforts paid off," Ylanan said.
He headed the Task Force Ruba that Comendador had created. (GMD/With JTG/Sun
