URDANETA CITY—A carpenter from barangay Cabanbanan, Manaoag accused by his daughter of repeatedly abusing her and siring a child 5 years ago, walked away a free man when he was exonerated by the Regional Trial Court in a decision rendered last August 15.

Acquitted by RTC Judge-designate Ulysses Raciles Butuyan of Branch 49 on the ground of reasonable doubt was a 48 year old man who was accused of raping his daughter at least 15 times in December 2002.

The decision stated that “although the Court is persuaded beyond reasonable doubt that at least 15 times in December 2002, the accused and his daughter engaged in “sexual congress” it is by no means convinced that he had carnal knowledge of her through the abuse of his moral ascendancy over his daughter.”

“On the contrary, the girl’s erratically intractable testimony provided the court reason to conclude that what transpired between her and her father “was an orgy of consensual incest”, the decision further stated.

It was gleaned from the decision that the accused was acquitted “because the morally repugnant relationship between the father and daughter, absence and abuse of the former’s moral ascendancy over the latter, is yet to be condemned by the Revised Penal Code”.

In his controversial decision, Butuyan ordered the father to support his child and granddaughter.

The judge further ordered him to pay P1,000 as cost of suit.

Butuyan explained he inherited the case after it was long left undecided by previous judges, adding that various prosecutors and public attorneys handled the case.

Complaint

The complaint was filed by the girl, then 14 years old when the alleged incestuous rapes happened, with the help of her mother who had noticed her daughter’s bulging tummy.

The girl gave birth to a baby girl on September 21, 2003.

Out of shame, the girl and her daughter, as well as her mother, brothers and sisters have since left Manaoag.

In his defense, the father denied having raped his daughter citing that on December 6, 2002, he slept at the residence of his wife’s uncle in San Jacinto town, some five kilometers away from their home.

In her testimony, the girl said she was raped by her father against her will starting on December 6, 2002, inside their home while her mother was visiting relatives in another town and while her brothers and sisters were in their neighbor’s house watching television.

She said this was repeated 14 times more, all in December, every time her mother was out of their home.

The daughter testified that after each sexual attack, the accused warned her not to tell anyone, otherwise he would kill all of them in the family. — LM

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