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Sample Counter Affidavit

1) Three respondents, Leodan Bustarde, Clea Lagatao, and Jojo Bustarde, filed a counter-affidavit denying allegations of grave threats made against them by complainant Benison Seguin. 2) They claim the alleged threatening words were impossible because the respondents were caring for their dying mother at the time of the incident. 3) Respondent Clea Lagatao also argues her words threatening to sue did not constitute a criminal threat under Philippine law and were said in anger at being threatened in her own home while caring for a child.

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Sample Counter Affidavit

1) Three respondents, Leodan Bustarde, Clea Lagatao, and Jojo Bustarde, filed a counter-affidavit denying allegations of grave threats made against them by complainant Benison Seguin. 2) They claim the alleged threatening words were impossible because the respondents were caring for their dying mother at the time of the incident. 3) Respondent Clea Lagatao also argues her words threatening to sue did not constitute a criminal threat under Philippine law and were said in anger at being threatened in her own home while caring for a child.

Uploaded by

Rofy Laureano
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Republic of the Philippines

Department of Justice
NATIONAL PROSECUTION SERVICE
Office of the Provincial Prosecutor
San Carlos City, Pangasinan

BENISON G. SEGUIN,

Complainant,

NPS DOCKET NO.I-OIC-INV-191-00242


-versus- For: GRAVE THREATS

LEODAN BUSTARDE,
CLEA B. LAGATAO
JOJO BUSTARDE,

Respondents.
x------------------------------------------------x

COUNTER-AFFIDAVIT

Respondents, LEODAN BUSTARDE, CLEA B. LAGATAO and JOJO


BUSTARDE, all residing at Barangay Palma, Basista, Pangasinan, after having
duly sworn to in accordance with law, hereby deposes and say THAT;

1 . We are the respondents in criminal case docketed as NPS DOCKET


NO.I-OIC-INV-191-00242 for Grave Threats;

2 . We are executing this Counter-Affifdavit as a comment to the Sworn


Statements of complainant BENISON G. SEGUIN and witness
ALFRED B. BUSTARDE1 pursuant to the Subpoena2 of the Senior
Asst. Provincial Prosecutor RODELLLE T. BELTRAN;

3 . The respon den ts were being char ged of the crim e of


gr ave t hrea ts pe nalized under Article 282 of t he Revised
Pen al Code , we, the respondents, however, beg to utterly differ
to the malicious allegations hurled by the complainant;

4. The alleged utterances “SUBOK MON EKALEN TAY METRO NA


DANOM TA NANENGNENG MO LAY ANAPEN MO” made by
respondents JOJO BUSTARDE and LEO DAN BUSTARDE on
August 16, 2019, were mere assumptions and at best imaginary,
hence, respondents deny each and all allegations in the said sworn
statement;

5. It is impossible for respondent JOJO BUSTARDE to utter such words


because he is not a resident of the place of the incident. On the
1
Dated September 11, 2019
2
Dated September 23, 2019
aforementioned date and time of the incident, JOJO BUSTARDE was
at his own house, five houses away from the place of the incident,
sleeping like a log because he was the one on overnight duty the night
before, caring for their mother, who at that time is lying on her bed
comatose and dying (the mother eventually succumb to death on
August 21, 2019);

6. Same with respondent LEO DAN BUSTARDE, who was in his own
house and not present at the place of the incident, who likewise woke
up late because he assisted his brother Jojo in caring for their
bedridden mother along with their other siblings;

7. The respondent-siblings were too busy taking care of their ailing


mother who was then at the brink of death. They would rather spend
their time with their dying mother other than doing other things like
confronting the said complainant. Hence, the said words allegedly
uttered by respondents JOJO BUSTARDE and LEO DAN
BUSTARDE were too impossible to commit because of the
circumstances stated above;

8. The utterances “SUBOK MON EKALEN TAY METRO NA DANOM


TAN PANPRAKTISAN TAKAYO, SUBOK YO TA IKASO TAKAYO”
uttered by respondent CLEA B. LAGATAO does not constitute a threat
to the life of the complainant, if that could even qualify as a threat, an
utterance to sue does not fall within what is contemplated by the law to
be punishable;

9. Respondent CLEA B. LAGATAO was taking care of her three (3)


month- old baby boy when the complainant along with some male
persons came barging in within their premises. Her sleep deprivation
brought about by taking care of her dying mother and the disturbance
brought about by the unfair allegations being hurled by the
complainant against her caused her to be easily threatened in her own
home and premises. The respondent Clea uttered the words SUBOK
MON EKALEN TAY METRO NA DANOM TAN PANPRAKTISAN
TAKAYO IDEDEMANDA, SUBOK YO TA IKASO TAKAYO
(Subukan nyong tanggalin yang metro ng tubig namin at
pagprapraktisan ko kayo ng demanda. Subukan nyo at
dedemanda ko talaga kayo!), those words were uttered in the height
of emotions as the respondent feels aggrieved and threatened in her
own home despite her gentle explanation to the complainants about
the predicament of her mother and her children if the said water meter
will be taken out arbitrarily. She uttered such words, as she has no
other recourse but to protect their premises being threatened by the
complainant.

10. Uttering the words SUBOK MON EKALEN TAY METRO NA


DANOM TAN PANPRAKTISAN TAKAYO IDEDEMANDA, SUBOK
YO TA IKASO TAKAYO does not tantamount to a crime but rather an
invitation to settle things in the proper forum and within the bounds of
the rule of law. Without being litigious, and being a student of law,
respondent Lagatao being an under bar and a law graduate, deems it
best to bring the altercation and the pressing matter at hand within the
proper forum, that is before the proper courts, as the complainant was
imputing to her a crime of pilferage. Thus, the “utterances to sue” was
uttered. Said utterances by the respondent was a normal and natural
reaction of a person under the strain and pressure of being threatened
in her own home while carrying her child;

11. In a plethora of cases decided by the Supreme Court, it has been held
that the threat should be offensive and positively strong to constitute a
future harm and that the accused must be in the position to make good
of her threats. In this case, the respondent Lagatao was not in any way
a threat to the life and limb of the male complainant with a male
companion seeing that the respondent was sleep deprived and yet, still
carrying her three month- old child at that? What threat could a woman
with a child do to a man who has every opportunity to hurt her in the
premises of her own home that she shares along with an ailing mother?
The only logical thing she could do within her power at that time is to
stop that man from proceeding with his threats of forcibly removing the
water meter through words under pain of threatening to sue him;

12. Further, the Supreme Court held that there is nothing unlawful on the
threat to sue. It is a practice followed to compel others to respect and
protect one’s right and upon failure to do so, an action can be instituted
in court. Such a threat is proper within the realm of the law as means to
protect one’s right. It cannot constitute duress even if the claim proves
to be unfounded so long as she believes that it was her right to do so.
Threatening to sue to protect one’s right is not a “wrong” and not within
the threat contemplated by law to be punishable;

13. Nothing in the utterances made by respondent indicate a deliberate


purpose of creating in the mind of the complainant, the belief that the
alleged threat would be carried into effect; assuming arguendo that the
utterances to sue would create in the mind of the complainant an
imminent danger to his life and limb, how come that the complainant
was able to successfully removed the water meter of the respondents
for alleged water pilferage? Thus, we can only come to one conclusion,
the complainant was not threatened at all and this case was only filed
maliciously against the respondent siblings for whatever maleficent
intentions they were concocting against the family of the respondents;

14. Well settled is the rule that in criminal cases, the prosecution must rely
on the strength of its case and not on the weakness of the defense of
the accused. Here, the complainant did not establish probable cause for
the filing of a criminal case for grave threats considering that all the
elements of the crime as defined under Article 282 of the Revised Penal
Code were not established;

15. This Counter-affidavit is hereto submitted by the respondents to fully


elucidate their position and answer to the present Complaint and to fully
and specifically deny all the allegations therein.
LEODAN BUSTARDE JOJO BUSTARDE
Respondent Respondent

CLEA B. LAGATAO
Respondent

SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN TO before me this ____th of October 2019 in


the City of San Carlos, Pangasinan, October 10, 2019
VERIFICATION

We the undersigned r e s p o n d e n t s , after being sworn to in


accordance with law, do hereby depose and state, that:

1. We are the respondents in the above-entitled case;

2. We have caused the preparation of the foregoing counter affidavit;

3. We have read and understood its contents and that the


allegations therein are true and correct to the best of our
knowledge and/or based on authentic documents;

AFFIANT SAYETH NAUGHT.

In witness whereof, we hereunto affix our signature this October


10, 2019.

LEODAN BUSTARDE JOJO BUSTARDE


Respondent Respondent

CLEA B. LAGATAO
Respondent

SUBSCRIBED AND SWORN to before me this _____________;


affiants exhibiting to me their ________________ with No.
____________________.

WITNESS MY HAND AND SEAL this _______________________.

NOTARY PUBLIC

DOC. NO._______
PAGE NO._______
BOOK NO._______
SERIES OF 2019

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