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Jean is the adopted daughter of the spouses Antolin and Pura Canonigo who are residing at the interior of Junquera St., Cebu City (pp. 113-114, tsn). She was taken to their care when she was only one month old, and they reared her as their own child, spending for her education and all her needs (pp. 114-115, tsn).
Sergio Paras, the appellant, was a very close friend of Antolin Canonigo (p. 182, tsn). In the evenings he frequented their store located along Junquera Street, where he used to see Jean tending the same (pp. 60-61; 207-208, tsn), and he also went often to their house to watch television (p. 60, tsn).
In short, the appellant saw the complainant grow up through the years and develop into young womanhood (pp. 200-201, tsn).
In the evening of Sunday, February 25, 1968, the Canonigos were away visiting relatives in Lawaan, Cebu City (p. 18, tsn), and they did not return until 11:30 o'clock at night (p. 54, tsn). Jean was left behind with her elder brother Boy, and two maids, to tend to the store and their house (pp. 12 & 14, tsn).
At 7:30 o'clock that evening Jean ate her supper, and at 8:30 p.m., she went to their store to relieve the two maids, Vising and Gabring so they could eat their supper too (pp. 78-79, tsn). Jean was in their store with her brother Boy (p. 14, tsn). In less than an hour, the two maids returned, so Jean went home, as no one was left in their house. Their residence is located somewhere behind their store, around ten to fifteen meters away (pp. 14-15, & p. 18, tsn).
When Jean reached their kitchen door (Exhibit D-3 p. 60, rec.), and as she was about to enter the same, she heard someone calling her, thus: 'Jean, come here for a while because I have something to tell you' (p. 16, tsn), She turned her head, and she saw the appellant who was just one step behind her, standing inside the bathroom of their adjacent neighbor, Mr. Santos (Exhibit E-2, p. 62, rec.; pp. 2930, tsn), Terrified, the complainant started to open the door in order to get inside their house, but immediately, the appellant held her right hand and twisted her arm behind her, at the same time, covering her mouth with the palm of his left hand (pp. 27 & 32, tsn), Then, in said position, he pulled and dragged her several paces backward until they came to an enclosure (Exhibit D-5 p. 60, rec.) in front of the banguera of Mr. Santos (lbid; Exhibit F-1, p. 61, rec pp. 32-36, & 37-38, tsn), There, the appellant pinned the complainant against the cement wag (Exhibit F-2, p. 61, rec.) and warned her not to make any noise, otherwise, she would die (pp. 38 & 40, tsn),
With the complainant trembling and helpless (pp. 43-44), the appellant then raised her dress and pulled her panty down. Then he pushed her downward and forced her to He down on the cement floor (pp. 45-46, tsn), With his feet, the appellant pushed her panty off her feet (p. 101, tsn), then spread her thighs with his knees, and mounted on her. His left palm was still covering her mouth so she could not shout. At this juncture, the appellant, once more threatened the complainant, telling her, thus: 'Don't move Jean or else I will kill you,' and this, the appellant subsequently repeated many more times (pp. 44-47, tsn), as he 'jerked' top of the complainant, 'moving his hips up and down' (untol-untol) (pp. 45-49, tsn),
The complainant felt something very hard enter her organ which caused her pain, and then, she lost consciousness (p. 50, tsn),
A short while thereafter, the appellant pulled the complainant and helped her to stand. The latter could not do so on her own, because her private part was still painful. Before she left, the appellant gave her panty, cautioning her with the following words: 'Don't tell anybody about this. Do not tell your parents or your brothers or else I will kill them' (p. 51, tsn).
Forthwith, the complainant went-away through their kitchen door, and then up the stairs. On her way, she felt some fluid oozing out of her organ. She, therefore, proceeded to the bathroom to wash herself, and there, she found that the fluid was reddish with blood (pp. 51-52, tsn),
Aside from her organ, the complainant felt a stinging pain on several other parts of her body, such as her right hand, her mouth, and her buttocks, which was pressed hard on gravel where she was forced to lie down (pp. 52-53, tsn), She then went to her room and cried (p. 53, tsn),
The complainant did not report the incident to her family, because of her fear of what the appellant had warned her (pp. 54-55, tsn), She kept her secret to herself-until August 5, 1968.
On said date, complainant's mother, Mrs. Canonigo was on her way to the bank, when Mrs. Filoteo a close friend of hers, also residing at Junquera Street, asked her to drop by at her dress shop as they had 'something important to talk about' (pp. 11 6-117, tsn), Mrs. Filoteo then told her about some gossip which she had heard in the neighborhood regarding her daughter, Jean-to the effect that the child was apparently pregnant (pp. 118-121, tsn), Mrs. Canonigo was taken aback, but at the same nine she recalled that the first and last menstrual period of Jean was sometime in January 1968, and that her second menstruation was supposed to have come on February 8, 1968, but that, she particularly remembered, it did not arrive on said date or in the succeeding months thereafter, because her youngest daughter had been asking her why Jean was no longer having her menstruation (pp. 121-122, tsn),
Mrs. Canonigo did not proceed to the bank anymore. She went to their store where she found her husband and informed him of what she had heard (p. 123. tsn), He was mad. He told her to bring the child to a doctor for verification of the report (pp. 125-126, tsn), Since Jean was still in school and Mrs. Canonigo's transaction in the bank was very important, she went first to the bank. When she returned home, the child was already there, eating ice candy (pp. 125 & 127-128, tsn),
Mother and daughter had a talk, and the former inquired from the latter whether or not she was pregnant. Jean was surprised, but she would not ten. She only answered by asking 'Why?' (pp. 128-129, tsn),
In the afternoon of the same date, August 5, 1968, Jean and her mother went to the Fornolles Clinic. While waiting for their number to be called, Mrs. Canonigo held Jean by the hand and asked her, 'Do you know what happened to you Jean, were you disgraced?' Jean asked her in return, 'what is disgraced Ma?' Her mother explained (p. 132, tsn),
Jean became uneasy. She stared at the door of the doctor's clinic. then looked back at her mother. Then she said, 'Come Ma let us go down'(p 133, tsn),
When they reached the foot of the stairs, Mrs. Canonigo asked her again. Jean was confused. She would look towards the sky then look down, and then she would scratch her nape. And all the time, she was sweating. Finally, she said, 'No, I won't.' When her mother asked her what it was, she answered, 'No, I won't tell Ma because I would be killed (pp. 133-134, tsn), When her mother asked who would kill her she added, 'I would be killed and something one day would happen to you also' (pp. 134-135, tsn),
Upon the proddings and assurances of her mother, telling her not to be afraid to name the person who abused her, as they are her parents and would help and protect her, Jean bowed her head down and uttered the name, 'Sergio' (p. 135, tsn), They called a taxi and proceeded home, because by this time, Jean was perspiring profusely (p. 137, tsn),
Mrs. Canonigo knew at once that Jean was referring to the appellant Sergio Paras. There was no other Sergio in their place (p. 36, tsn), There was no other Sergio Paras who was standing by in their store, and who is also notorious for defending women in their neighborhood. They had several maids who went home because of him (p. 138, tsn),
On August 12, 1968, Jean was finally examined by Dr. Fe Sison of the Southern Island Hospital who recommended an X-ray examination. She was X-rayed by Dr. Romeo Murillo of the same hospital. Said examination revealed that she was pregnant (Exhibit G, p. 133, rec. pp. 144-148, tsn).
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