Vizconde murders

The Vizconde massacre was the multiple murder of members of the Vizconde family; Estrellita, Carmela and Anna Marie Jennifer, on June 30, 1991 at their dwelling in BF Homes, Parañaque City, Philippines. Carmela Vizconde was raped before she was murdered. Lauro Vizconde, the father, was in the United States for business when the murders took place.

The case became one of the most sensational in the country mostly because the accused were children of rich and influential families, including Hubert Webb, the son of the former basketball player and Philippine Senator Freddie Webb and Antonio Lejano II, the son of actress-singer Pinky de Leon and nephew of actor Christopher de Leon.

Trial

The case remained unsolved for almost four years until witness Jessica Alfaro surfaced on April 28, 1995 to shed light on the killing of the Vizcondes. Alfaro testified that she knew the suspects and was at the Vizconde house when the crime was committed.

Jessica Alfaro, however, has submitted contradicting affidavits of her accounts and is a self-confessed drug addict. It was also evident in footage of the trial that Alfaro herself had to be coached to identify all the defendants by their names.

Among other critical pieces of evidence that was not admitted by Judge Amelita Tolentino, was the note verbale from the United States Embassy that verified the claims of Webb that he was in the United States at the time of the massacre. This coincided with his passport and Philippine Immigration records but were haphazardly dismissed by Tolentino's court.

Tolentino would accept this evidence only if then Secretary of State Madeleine Albright would testify as to the veracity of the the note verbale's contents.

Moreover, Judge Tolentino also denied Webb's request to subject semen samples to DNA testing on the belief that the samples may no longer be intact.

Aftermath

On January 6, 2000, the presiding judge in the case rendered her decision, sentencing Hubert Webb, Peter Estrada, Hospicio Fernandez, Michael Gatchalian, Antonio Lejano II and Miguel Rodriguez to life imprisonment. They were also ordered to indemnify the Vizconde family Php 3 million for the murders.

Also found guilty of burning bedsheets and tampering with other evidence in the crime was Gerardo Biong, a Paranaque City policeman. He was sentenced to twelve years in prison.

Two of the accused remain fugitives from the law; Joey Filart and Artemio Ventura.

The Court of Appeals affirmed the ruling on December 16, 2004.

Recent developments

In April 2010, the Philippine Supreme court approved DNA testing to be performed on the semen specimen obtained during autopsy from the victims. This has resulted in the revelation by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) that they no longer had the specimens as these were remanded to the Parañaque courts.

In popular culture

The case of the murdered family was featured on a Philippine TV show Case Unclosed as its 9th episode entitled "Vizconde Massacre Case."

External links

• Manila Times Special Report on the Vizconde Case
• NBI exec: We’ve turned over semen specimen from Vizconde girl to court
• Hope for Hubert Webb