Who are guilty of robbery?

ART.293

ELEMENTS of robbery IN GENERAL:
1. That there be personal property belonging to another (bienes muebles)
2. That there is unlawful taking of that property (apoderamiento or asportacion)
3. That the taking must be with intent to gain; (animus lucrandi)
4. That there is violence against or intimidation of any person, or force upon anything.

Person from whom property was taken need not be the owner. Legal possession is sufficient.

General rule: The identity of the real owner is not essential so long as the personal property taken does not belong to the accused. Exception: If the crime is robbery with homicide

The taking of personal property must be unlawful in order to constitute robbery. If the property is in the possession of the offender because it was given to him in trust by the owner, the crime is estafa.

If taking was lawful, then misappropriated after possession crime may be malversation, (estafa)

As to robbery w/ violence or intimidation, from the moment the offender gains possession of the
thing even if offender has had no opportunity to dispose of the same, the unlawful taking is complete.

As to robbery w/ force upon things, thing must be taken out of the building in order to consummate robbery.

Intent to gain is presumed from unlawful taking of personal property.

The unlawful taking must not be under the claim of title or ownership.

When there is no intent to gain but there is violence in the taking, the crime is grave coercion.

The violence or intimidation must be committed against the person of the offended party, not upon the thing taken.

General rule: Violence or intimidation must be present before the “taking” is complete.

Exception: When violence results in homicide, rape, intentional mutilation or any of the serious physical injuries in paragraphs 1 and 2 of Art. 263 (Serious Physical injuries), the taking of the property is robbery complexed w/ any of these crimes under Art. 294, even if the taking is already complete when violence was used by the offender.

Use of force upon things is entrance to the building by means described in Arts. 299 and 302.

When both violence or intimidation and force upon things concur in committing the crime, it is robbery w/ violence against persons.

If not personal property but real property or rights crime may be usurpation.

Theft, not robbery, where accused cut with bolo the strings tying opening of a sack and then took the palay.

RA 6539 is applicable when property taken in robbery is a motor vehicle (Carnapping: taking with intent to gain of motor vehicle belonging to another without the latter’s consent, or by means of violence against or intimidation of persons or by using force upon things; Unqualified -14years and 8 months to 17 years and 4 months; violence/force upon things -17 years and 4 months to 30 years; occupant killed or raped – reclusion perpetua to death)

PEOPLE vs. BOCALAN, G.R. No. 141527. 9/4/03
For the appellant to be guilty of consummated robbery, there must be incontrovertible proof that property was taken from the victim. The appellant is guilty of attempted robbery only when he commences the commission of robbery directly by overt acts and does not perform all the acts of execution which would produce robbery by reason of some causes or accident other than his own spontaneous desistance.


robbery in general














   Robbery                 Grave Threats              Grave Coercion

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Bar Exam Question (1996)

Robbery (1996)

Five robbers robbed, one after the other five houses occupied by different families located inside a compound enclosed by a six-feet high hollow block fence. How many robberies did the five commit? Explain.

Suggested Answer:

The offenders committed only one robbery in the eyes of the law because when they entered the compound, they were impelled only by a single indivisible criminal resolution to commit a robbery as they were not aware that there were five families inside said compound, considering that the same was enclosed by a six-feet high hollow-block fence. The series of robbery committed in the same compound at about the same time constitutes one continued crime, motivated by one criminal impulse.