crim case nos. 45303 & 45304
pp vs larraņaga et al                        
hearing september 22, 1998
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- page 28 -

             prints have found to have alike. In other words, fingerprints of the 2 persons even with
             regards to his own 10 fingers have never found to be exactly alike in all aspects. Twins,
             triplets, quadruplets and even quintuplets have never found to have the same fingerprints.
             And the second one is the principle of permanency.

 

 

Q         Can you tell this Honorable Court what is that so-called principle of permanency?

 

 

A         The principle of permanency is that fingerprints have said to have been formed during the
            third embryonic period or the third month of pregnancy and that these fingerprints will ever
            remain the same during his lifetime and will continue to be the same after his death unless
            his body or his flesh and body have fallen away. And the third principle is the principle of
            infallibility. Meaning, this principle involves that it cannot be forged, it cannot be altered, it
           cannot be change, it cannot be copied in many ways and those are the 3 principles of
           fingerprints which I have established the basis that the fingerprint is the most and positive
           means to conclude that there are no 2 persons of the same type.

 

 

Q        Alright. You just testified that one of the principles in fingerprintexamination which you said
           makes it the most positive means of identification is permanency and you just also stated for
           the record that the fingerprint of a person will remain the same from the third month of
           pregnancy even until after the death of the said person. Now, my question Mr. Witness is this
           - Supposing a dead person's body is exposed to sun or is exposed to water, would it not affect
           his fingerprints after death?


A        Definitely it could not affect, ma'am.

 

 

Q       Now, can you tell this Honorable Court where were you in the morning of July 20, 1997?
 

A        I was in my office reporting for work.

 

 

Q       When you mentioned your office, where is your office located?

 

 

A       Located at Camp Sotero Cabahug, Gorordo Avenue, Cebu City.

 

 

Q      While you were in your office at Camp Sotero Cabahug, Gorordo Avenue, Cebu City, what
          happened that morning of July 20, 1997?

 

 

A       A certain SPO2, SPO2 rather - SPO2 Rosalita arrived and delivered a letter-request signed
          by SeniorSuperintendent Mario Potot, the then incumbent Cebu Police Provincial Office.


                                                                                

                                                                                   - page 29 -


Q         Now, what was that letter-request about, that letter-request which you said was issued by
            Provincial Director Potot and was personally delivered to you by a certain SPO2 Rosalita?

 

 

A         It was all about the request to conduct fingerprint examinations on the dead woman found in
            the deep ravine at Barangay Tan-awan, Carcar, Cebu. 

 

 

Q        Alright. Do you have a copy of that letter-request which you just mentioned?


A        Yes, ma'am, I brought along with me the copy of the letter-request which I have mentioned to
           you a while ago. (witness is producing and showing to the Prosecutor a letter-request dated
           July 20, 1007 signed by Mario Llanto Potot, Superintendent, Provincial Director)
          

PROS. GALANIDA: 

          May I request, at this juncture, Your Honor... 

 

 

COURT: 

          What date was it?

 

 

PROS. GALANIDA: 

          July 20, 1997. May I request, Your Honor, that this letter-request signed by Police Senior
         Superintendent Mario Llanto Potot, Provincial Director and dated July 20, 1997, be marked
         as Exhibit "TT" for the prosecution.

 

 

COURT: 

          Mark it.

 

 

PROS. GALANIDA: 

          And the portion here, Your Honor, which is a rubber stamped marking showing the date this
          was received, the time and date also it was received, who received and who delivered, be
          marked as our Exhibit "TT-1".

 

 

COURT: 

         Mark it.

 

 

PROS. GALANIDA: 

Q      Now, Mr. Witness, would you know who made these markings here, Received 200830H July
         97 then Received by Police Inspector Ed Lenizo, Delivered by SPO2 Rene Rosalita?

 

 

A      I personally made these markings, ma'am. (witness identified the markings marked as Exhibit
        "TT-1", the name Lenizo and SPO2 Rene Rosalita).

 

 

 

                                                                 - page 30 -

 

 

Q         Considering that we are not very much conversant with military time, can you tell this
            Honorable Court what time is this 200830H July 1997?

 

 

A         I received this at 8:30 in the morning on July 20, 1997.

 

 

Q         Now, in this request already marked as Exhibit "TT", item no. 9 here has this entry,
            Evidence Documents Submitted and below it is Voter's Registration no. 31993938. We
            would like to know whether when you received this letter-request, you also received this

            evidence submitted which is Voter's Registration No. 31993938 indicated in this 
            letter-request? 


A         Yes, ma'am, I have received also the Voter's Registration Record No. which appears the
           name of Marijoy Chiong. (witness producing and showing to Prosecutor Galanida the
           Voter's Registration Record No. 31993938 of Marijoy Chiong) 
  

 

PROS. GALANIDA: 

           Now, considering, Your Honor, that this Voter's Registration Record will have to be
           returned to the Comelec, may we request the defense counsel to compare the machine copy
           of this Voter's Registration Record so that we will mark the machine copy instead of the
           original because this is to be  returned to the Comelec Office. May we request the
           gentlemen...  

 

 

COURT INTERPRETER: 

           Defense counsels comparing the original copy of the Voter's Registration Record to the
           machine copy.

 

 

ATTY. DEBALUCOS: 

           Yes, Your Honor, we admit that this machine copy appears to be a faithful reproduction
           from the Voter's Registration Record of a certain Marijoy Chiong.

 

 

PROS. GALANIDA:

           May we know whether that is also the same manifestation of the other 2 PAO lawyers, Your
           Honor, because that was the manifestation only of Atty. Debalucos. We would like to know
           whether the other 2 will also adopt the same manifestation.

 

 

ATTY. YPIL: 

          We adopt, Your Honor. 

 

 

ATTY. DE JESUS: 

          The manifestation of Atty. Debalucos, Your Honor, is also our manifestation. 

 

 

PROS. GALANIDA: 

          Thank you, Gentlemen. May we request, your Honor,

(NOTE:  1. RED COLOR OURS FOR EMPHASIS.
               2. THE ABOVE TEXT IS A FAITHFUL REPRODUCTION OF THE ORIGINAL DOCUMENT
                   REFORMATTED FOR  CLEARER APPRECIATION)