BAGUIO CITY—An American was sentenced to life imprisonment and fined P2 million after he was found guilty of qualified human trafficking by a local court.
However, Judge Mona Liza Teongson Tabora of the Regional Trial Court Branch 7 dismissed another count of qualified trafficking in persons and a separate charge of sexual abuse which were simultaneously filed against the foreigner.
In a 20-page decision, Judge Tabora ordered David Wayne Stonecypher to pay the accessory fine of P2 million as well as pay his 15-year -old victim the amount of P500,000 as moral damages and another P100,000 as exemplary damages and for him to pay the cost of litigation among others.
The case stemmed from the complaint of two minors, a 17-year-old male and a 15-year-old male, both from Bislig City in Surigao del Sur, who were promised shelter, clothing and education and subsequently transported from their place to the city but ended up being allegedly abused by the foreigner.
At the outset, the American national raised the defense of denial which the Supreme Court has time and again ruled to be the weakest of all defences.
“The Supreme Court held that denial is a negative, self-serving evidence that cannot prevail over a positive and categorical assertion of a credible witness that the accused perpetrated the crime,” the decision stated.
The court cited that the victim testified five times just to complete his direct examination at the bail hearings and even after a rigorous cross examination, he maintained his version of the events and never wavered in his testimony when he was recalled to the witness stand twice.
The court stipulated that the suspect should also be adjudged liable for moral and exemplary damages of P500,000 and P100,000, respectively in line with the ruling in several jurisprudence.
As to the charge of sexual abuse, while the court cannot discount the possibility that because the suspect used a lubricant, the victim in reality did not sustain any palpable injury to his anus although the foreigner tried to sodomize him which could explain why physicians did not find any sign of fissures or bleeding, still there is also the same possibility that the lack of any obvious injury was because no sexual contact actually occurred.
Thus, the court resolved to rule in favor of the accused in the said case of sexual abuse because as correctly pointed out in the Joint Memorandum for the acquittal of the accused and as held by the SC.
The court dismissed the similar charge of qualified trafficking in persons filed by the 17-year old companion of the 15-year old victim for insufficiency of evidence against the suspect.