Short answer. Under Article 328 of the Revised Penal Code as amended by Republic Act No. 10951, spreading infection among cattle is a special form of malicious mischief. The penalty depends on the value of the damage caused: prisión correccional minimum to medium periods if damage exceeds ₱200,000; arresto mayor if between ₱40,001 and ₱200,000; arresto menor if ₱40,000 or less.
What the law says
Any person who shall cause damage to obstruct the performance of public functions, or using any poisonous or corrosive substance; or spreading any infection or contagion among cattle; or who causes damage to the property of the National Museum or National Library, or to any archive or registry, waterworks, road, promenade, or any other thing used in common by the public, shall be punished: 1. By prisión correccional in its minimum and medium periods, if the value of the damage caused exceeds Two hundred thousand pesos (₱200,000); 2. By arresto mayor if such value does not exceed the abovementioned amount but is over Forty thousand pesos (₱40,000); and 3. By arresto menor , if such value does not exceed Forty thousand pesos (₱40,000).
Revised Penal Code, Article 328 — Special Cases Of Malicious Mischief. Read the full provision →
Spreading disease among cattle as special malicious mischief
Article 328 of the Revised Penal Code designates certain forms of malicious damage as special cases of malicious mischief — acts treated more seriously than ordinary property destruction. One of the enumerated acts is spreading any infection or contagion among cattle. This is distinct from accidentally transmitting disease; the offense requires malicious intent — deliberately causing the spread. Someone who introduces infected animals into a herd, contaminates feed or water sources, or otherwise intentionally causes disease to spread commits this special form of the offense.
The value-based penalty tiers
Article 328 grades the penalty by the monetary value of the damage actually caused. Three tiers apply. If the damage exceeds ₱200,000, the penalty is prisión correccional in its minimum and medium periods — imprisonment from six months and one day to four years and two months. If the damage is over ₱40,000 but not more than ₱200,000, the penalty is arresto mayor — one month and one day to six months. If the damage is ₱40,000 or less, the penalty is arresto menor — one to thirty days. These are the current figures under Republic Act No. 10951.
Other acts covered by Article 328
Spreading disease among cattle is one of several special acts Article 328 covers. The provision also reaches: causing damage to obstruct the performance of public functions; using any poisonous or corrosive substance to cause damage; and damaging property of the National Museum, National Library, archives, registries, waterworks, roads, promenades, or things used in common by the public. All of these acts share the same penalty structure — the tier is determined by the value of the damage caused, not by which specific act was committed.
RA 10951 and the current thresholds
The ₱200,000 and ₱40,000 thresholds in Article 328 reflect the current text as amended by Republic Act No. 10951, enacted in 2017. That law updated the monetary thresholds throughout the Revised Penal Code to bring them in line with current economic conditions. Older editions still print the 1930 amounts, which are significantly lower. Any analysis of a specific case involving Article 328 should confirm whether the source being consulted reflects the RA 10951 amendments, because the penalty tier that applies depends directly on these peso thresholds.