US V. TAMBUNTING

FACTS:

The Manila Gas Company installed equipment for the transmission of gas in a house at Evangelista. After the original subscriber left, the apparatus was sealed and the services discontinued.

Later Mr Tambunting moved in. He was a cheapskate and spliced the tubing to leech free gas for household use. Alas, the crime was discovered by the gas company. The prosecutor filed charges and hailed Mr. Tambunting to court

ISSUE:

Whether or not gas can be the subject of larceny.

HELD:

Yes. Gas is a substance which lends itself to felonious appropriation. It is a valuable merchandise that can be bought and sold like other personal property, susceptible of being siphoned from a larger mass and transported from place to place. Articles 517 and 518 sets parameters for the theft of gas and it is a valid ordinance.