Dear PAO,

What case can I file against the persons who entered my fenced vacant lot without my permission? I live in another town

and I don’t have a caretaker in that lot so we just fenced it with barbed wire and placed a “No Trespassing” sign.

Kim

Dear Kim,

The owner of a property is vested by law with certain rights over his property. He has the right to enjoy and dispose of the

thing that he owns without other limitations than those established by law. To further protect the rights of the owners of

pieces of property, the law makes it unlawful for any person to enter the premises or property of another without the

consent or permission of the owner. Any person who violates the same may be held criminally liable for trespassing,

which is defined and penalized under Article 281 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC). The form of trespass under this article

has the following elements: 1) that the offender enters the closed premises or the fenced estate of another; 2) that the

entrance is made while either of them is uninhabited; 3) that the prohibition be manifest; 4) that the trespasser has not

secured the permission of the owner or the caretaker thereof. The word “premises” means a distinct and definite locality. It

may mean a room, shop, building or definite area, but in either case, locality is fixed (Luis B. Reyes, The Revised Penal

Code, Book Two, page 577).

Your fenced vacant lot is considered uninhabited since no one is living therein. Your act in fencing your vacant lot with

strands of barbed wire and placing a “No Trespassing” sign are more than enough manifestation of your prohibition to

anyone from entering your premises. Hence, you may file a criminal complaint for other forms of trespass against the

persons who entered your vacant lot without your consent. Your complaint may be filed before the Office of the

Prosecutor of the place where your lot is situated. If you will be able to prove the guilt of the persons who unlawfully

entered your fenced vacant lot beyond reasonable doubt, they may be imposed the penalty of arresto menor (imprisonment

from one day to thirty days) or a fine not exceeding 200 pesos, or both (Article 281, Revised Penal Code).
We hope that we were able to answer your queries. Please be reminded that this advice is based solely on the facts that

you have narrated and our appreciation of the same. Our opinion may vary when other facts are changed or elaborated.

When filing a criminal case

If you are a victim of crime or felony in the Philippines, it is wise to report the crime or felony with the
barangay and police authorities. Thereafter, you must secure a barangay blotter and police blotter or
report so that you may use them as evidences. If you sustained injuries, go to a government hospital to
have yourself checked out. The medical report of said hospital will be very useful to prove your physical
injuries. In addition, ask someone to take photographs of your injuries as proof.

To enable you to properly lodge a criminal complaint, it is of foremost concern that you secure the services
of a good and efficient Philippine lawyer, attorney or law firm. As you will need to file a Complaint-Affidavit
with the Office of the City Prosecutor where the crime was committed, it is necessary to have your facts
straight and evidences in check. A good criminal lawyer will draft a Complaint-Affidavit which will prove all
the elements of the crime or felony.

After filing your Complaint-Affidavit, the Office of the City Prosecutor will issue a subpoena against the
accused, requiring him to appear on a certain date and time to submit his Counter-Affidavit. Thereafter,
you may file a Reply-Affidavit to controvert the new issues he raised. In the same vein, the accused may
file a Rejoinder-Affidavit.

This process is known as preliminary investigation. Preliminary investigation is an inquiry or proceeding to

determine whether there is sufficient ground to engender a well-founded belief that a crime has been
committed and the respondent is probably guilty thereof, and should be held for trial. This is a crucial
stage in criminal proceedings because the prosecutor will have to determine whether there is sufficient
ground to file an information in court against the perpetrator. That is why you need to seek expert legal
advice and engage the services of Philippine criminal prosecution lawyers or attorneys to ensure that your
criminal complaint is strong and can prove the elements of the crime.

If there are no sufficient grounds, then the prosecutor will dismiss the case. As such, the criminal
complaint will not be filed in court. Your criminal lawyer may file a Motion for Reconsideration with the City
Prosecutor. If the Motion is denied, you may seek remedy from the Department of Justice.

If the prosecutor finds probable cause, he will issue a resolution spelling out the reasons for such finding.
The prosecutor will correspondingly file an information in court, with the recommended bail. If the judge in
the pertinent court finds sufficient grounds, he shall issue a warrant of arrest. Except for certain crimes
punishable by reclusion perpetua, when evidence of guilt is strong, the accused may post bail.

Trial will thereafter ensue. It must be emphasized that criminal cases are offenses committed against the
state. Thus, the prosecutor or fiscal will be the one prosecuting the criminal case. However, he may be
assisted by private prosecutors. In view of the known fact that prosecutors are laden with heavy work
load, it is best to secure your own private lawyer in the Philippines who can give your concerns the
appropriate attention and detail.

Nicolas & De Vega Law Offices is a full service law firm in the Philippines. You may visit us at the 16th
Flr., Suite 1607 AIC Burgundy Empire Tower, ADB Ave., Ortigas Center, 1605 Pasig City, Metro Manila,
Philippines. You may also call us at +632 4706126, +632 4706130, +632 4016392.
Section 64. Trespassing. Any person who, not being authorized by law, shall enter the premises of another
without permission or against the will of the lawful occupant shall be punished as follows: 1. If the offender is a
public officer who is not authorized by a court order, the penalty shall be within level 2. 2. If the offender
commits any act of force, violence or intimidation and the same does not amount to another crime, the penalty
shall be within level 2. 3. If the trespassing is committed without violence and intimidation, the penalty shall be
within level 1. Trespassing is excused when the entry is made for the purpose of preventing some serious harm,
or for the purpose of rendering some humanitarian service. (RPC 280, 281)

Chapter 1 Theft Section 67. Theft. Any person who, with intent to gain, takes or appropriates any personal
property belonging to another without the latter’s consent is punishable within Level 3, (provided that the
amount or the value of the property stolen does not exceed PhP2 million. An additional one year of
imprisonment shall be imposed upon the offender for up to PhP1 million in excess of PhP2 million). Personal
property may include gas, electricity, software, business, services and electronic data. Any attempt shall be
punishable within Level 2. Section 68. Serious theft. (a) A serious case of theft, punishable within Level 4,
occurs if the offender steals – (1) By breaking into enclosed premises or space using special, extraordinary, or
violent means, disguise, or similar method or strategy; by exploiting the helplessness of another person, a
calamity, an accident, or a common danger; in a manner that puts the victim or his family in grave economic
situation; or on a commercial basis; (2) Property dedicated to religious worship or veneration or from a church
or space used for the practice of religion; anything of significance to science, art or history or technical
development; stored or transmitted electronic data; electrical energy; firearm. Explosive, or other military
weapon; or property protected by a sealed container or other protective equipment; or (3) With grave abuse of
confidence. (b) Except in case of firearm, explosive, or other military weapon, an especially serious case shall
be excluded from all cases under subsection (a) above if the property is of minor value. Section 69. Identity
theft. Any person who shall, through any means, such as search engines, insider attacks, attacks from outside
(illegal access to computer systems, Trojans, keyloggers, spyware and other malware) or through the use of
phishing and or other social engineering techniques, obtain the identity information of another like name, birth
date, current address or previous addresses, email accounts, passwords or other access credentials, without the
latter’s consent and/or disposes such identity information, which includes the sale of such information to third
persons shall be punished within Level 3. An attempt to obtain, possess or dispose another person’s identity
information shall be punishable by Level 2.