THE Supreme Court (SC) sentenced to reclusion perpetua or up to 40-year imprisonment without parole a husband and his wife for conniving in raping their own 14-year-old daughter.
In its decision, the SC Second Division junked the appeal of the couple and affirmed the ‘ guilty’ verdict on their qualified rape case.
The SC also ordered them to pay the victim P100,000 as civil indemnity, P100,000 for moral damages and P100,000 in exemplary damages, with an interest rate of 6% per annum from the date of the decision’s finality until the time that they are able to pay fully.
“The Court stresses that incestuous rape is not a simple criminal offense that can be easily fabricated, especially in this case were both parents are accused,” the SC said.
“The humiliation of a trial and life-long stigmatization will surely take a toll on the victim and her family,” it added.
Court records show that the rape case was filed against the couple by the victim’s sibling.
The girl’s parents were found guilty by the Regional Trial Court and this decision was affirmed by the Court of Appeals (CA), which is why a petition was filed with the SC that established the case and found that all the elements of rape are present.
“A wife helping her husband rape another person is not new and our jurisprudence is replete with cases of fathers raping their daughters. However, a mother helping her husband rape their own daughter is uncommon,” the SC said.
The SC said the victim’s testimony cannot be belied.
The decision was issued in August 2023 but was released by the SC just this October.
