People vs.

Norberto Del Monte y Gapay

Facts:

An informant approached the PDEA’s Special Enforcement Unit office in Brgy. Tarcan, Baliuag,
Bulacan and reported that Norberto Del Monte y Gapay aka “Obet”was selling shabu. Acting on
this information, PO1 Tolentino and other police officers planned a buy-bust operation. At
around 3:00 PM on the day of the operation, the informant approached Norberto and told him
that his friend was a drug user and was interested in purchasing shabu. PO1 Tolentino then paid
300 pesos in marked money to Norberto in exchange for .29 gm of shabu. After the transaction
was completed, PO1 Tolentino gave a signal to his fellow officers to arrest Norberto.

Norberto was later charged and convicted by the Regional Trial Court in Bulacan for violating
the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act. However, in his appeal to the Court of Appeals, he
raised the defense that the evidence submitted by the lone witness, PO1 Tolentino, was not
admissible because the police officers did not conduct an inventory of the drugs in front of him
in violation of Section 21 of Republic Act No. 9165, which requires the inventory and
photographing of confiscated drugs.

Issue:

WON the failure to conduct an inventory of the confiscated drugs in accordance with Section 21 of
Republic Act No. 9165 renders the evidence inadmissible.

Ruling:

The court ruled that the noncompliance with the provisions of Section 21 of the law regarding the
inventory and photographing of the confiscated drugs will not make the evidence inadmissible. The
admissibility of evidence is determined by its relevance to the issue and its compliance with the laws
and rules of court, and there is no provision that excludes the admission of evidence due to a failure to
conduct an inventory. The weight or value of the evidence, however, may be affected by the
noncompliance with Section 21.

The elements necessary for a successful prosecution of illegal sale of drugs are the identification of the
buyer and seller, the object of sale, and the delivery of the item and payment. What is crucial to prove
the illegal sale of dangerous drugs is the evidence of the transaction and the presentation of the corpus
delicti in court.