People v. Valdez

Summary

Romeo Valdez was charged with illegal possession of dangerous drugs under RA 9165 after being arrested on September 18, 2015, with 6.811 grams of suspected drugs. The Supreme Court acquitted Valdez despite his waiver of the right to question his warrantless arrest, finding fatal violations in the chain of custody requirements. The Court identified three critical breaches: failure to immediately mark the seized drugs at the arrest site, absence of required insulating witnesses during inventory, and gaps in custody documentation. The SC rejected the Court of Appeals' reasoning that stricter compliance is only needed for small quantities, emphasizing that any amount can be tampered with and that procedural safeguards protect the integrity of evidence regardless of quantity. The decision reinforces the mandatory nature of chain of custody procedures in drug cases to ensure the corpus delicti's authenticity and prevent evidence contamination.