A Rape Allegedly Committed in 2010, Can It Still be Filed Today?

The Vhong Navarro-Cedric Lee-Deniece Cornejo case has ramified and has become more complicated with the recent twist of their dramatic story.  Though, the camp of Lee and Cornejo has denied with the hands to help the alleged victim of rape committed by Vhong Navarro in the open but the we really do not know the whole truth about it.


Yesterday, February 19, 2014, a news broke out that an alleged rape victim of rape has filed a case against Vhong Navarro.  The girl was a former beauty contestant of Binibining Pilipinas alias Rose. The alleged rape was committed allegedly on 2010 or last 4 years ago.

Common people would ask whether the filing of rape is proper considering that it happened 4 years ago.  To answer this question, we have to cite the provision of the law on this matter.

According to Article 90 of the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines, as quoted below:

"Prescription of crimes. - Crimes punishable by death, reclusion perpetua or reclusion temporal shall prescribe in twenty years.

Crimes punishable by other afflictive penalties shall prescribe in fifteen years.

Those punishable by correctional penalty shall prescribe in ten years; with the exception of those punishable by arresto mayor, which shall prescribe in five years.

The crimes of libel or other similar offenses shall prescribe in one year.

The offenses of oral defamation and slander by deed shall prescribe in six months.

Light offenses prescribe in two months.

When the penalty fixed by law is a compound one, the highest penalty shall be made the basis of the application of the rules contained in the first, second, and third paragraphs of this article (As amended by R.A. No. 4661)

As provided in the above-mentioned provision of penal law, a specific crimes has a prescriptive period or the period on which the alleged victim may file his/her case in the proper forum.  Unless the same has been filed within the period provided by law, the filing is proper.

In the case of rape allegedly committed by Vhong Navarro way back in the year 2010, the case of rape has a penalty of reclusion perpetua to death.  

According to the said provision, if the crime filed has a penalty of reclusion perpetua to death, the prescriptive period shall be TWENTY YEAR.

Thus, counting from 2010 when the alleged crime of rape was committed, it is still within the twenty-year prescriptive period provided by law.

Therefor, the filing of rape today is proper.

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