SC affirms conviction in nude photo extortion case

The Supreme Court imposed a 14-year imprisonment sentence against a man who demanded money from his ex-girlfriend for the deletion of nude photos.

The conviction of the accused for robbery, stemming from his demand for money in exchange for deleting his ex-girlfriend's nude photos posted on Facebook, was affirmed by the Supreme Court.

The SC Second Division, in a decision penned by Associate Justice Amy C. Lazaro-Javier dated 2 August 2023, and uploaded on 26 April 2024, convicted Axel Tria of robbery with violence against or intimidation of persons. Six to 14 years of imprisonment was slapped against Tria.

According to records, the accused demanded P55,000 from his ex-girlfriend in exchange for deleting the latter's nude photos uploaded on her Facebook since Tria also knew the login credentials of her ex-girlfriend's Facebook account.

However, his ex-girlfriend said she could only give him P20,000. Tria’s continued demands led the girl to report the matter to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) Anti-Cybercrime Group.

Tria was arrested in an entrapment operation by the CIDG after he accepted money from his ex-girlfriend. He was charged with robbery and online libel.

The Regional Trial Court found Tria guilty of robbery but acquitted him of online libel for lack of evidence. This was affirmed by the Court of Appeals.

In its ruling, the high bench stated that Tria’s conviction for robbery should be sustained. It said, "the elements of robbery under Article 249(5) of the Revised Penal Code (RPC) are (a) there is personal property belonging to another; (b) there is unlawful taking of that property; (c) the taking is with intent to gain; and (d) there is violence or intimidation."

The court said in this case, Tria's ex-girlfriend was clearly forced to part with her money in exchange for the deletion of her nude photos posted on Facebook.

“Her compromising photos damaged and continued to damage her family life, reputation, and online business; thus, she felt she had no choice but to accede to Tria's demands,” said the court.

Since the crime was committed with the use of communication technologies, the imposable penalty under the RPC is raised by one degree higher in accordance with Section 6 of Republic Act No. 10175, or the Cybercrime Prevention Act.