Senior civil servant avoids jail for arms offence [1]
Thursday, February 1, 2018 - 17:47. Updated on Thursday, February 1, 2018 - 18:02.
Hekisou Fifita (48) who pleaded guilty and was convicted of carrying a .22 rifle inside a bar in Nuku’alofa with the intention to commit an offence received a fully suspended sentence on January 26, at the Supreme Court in Nuku'alofa.
Fifita, a senior civil servant having held senior positions at MEIDECC, was sentenced to one-year and nine-months imprisonment for the first count of carrying arms with intent to commit an offence. This was fully suspended upon conditions that he is placed under probation on strict terms. On the second count of carrying arms in a public place, he was convicted and discharged by Mr Justice Cato during sentencing.
The court heard that on August 6, 2016 the accused who was drinking alcohol inside Nauti Ruby's Bar at Faua Wharf was taken outside by the security man, the complainant in this case.
The judge said the accused then went to his parked car and came back carrying a .22 rifle seeking the complainant. He got to the entrance of the bar and asked for the complainant and a person ran by and managed to take the rifle away from him.
The police arrested Fifita shortly afterward and a police officer gave evidence that the accused was arrested together with the rifle and a magazine with five rounds of ammunition that was found inside his pocket. Importantly, he said the rifle was not loaded.
The accused had a licence for a .22 rifle and five. 22 long rifle ammunitions.
The judge was doubtful whether he had the gun to shoot the complainant, as the facts read, rather than to scare or threaten violence. The Crown particularized details of attempting to assault the complainant to which he pleaded guilty and not to some more serious crime of intended violence, he said.
“The rifle I am satisfied at the relevant time when intervention occurred was not loaded although I do not overlook he had access to ammunition and had placed this in his pocket. Had it been loaded then more serious consequences would have followed in terms of this sentencing as that would have suggested an actual shooting was contemplated.”
He said the offending was serious and the charge of possession of a firearm with intent carries a maximum sentence of 10-years imprisonment, the lesser offence five-years.
However, a starting point for sentencing of three-years and three months imprisonment was appropriate, the judge said although this is a serious offending, it was in his view for reasons given, towards the lower end of the scale.
"If the weapon had been loaded or the complainant hurt as a consequence of some use of the rifle that would have justified, in my view a higher starting point."
He then reduced the starting point by mitigation due to his early guilty plea, and valuable work for Tonga. He was sentenced on the first count, which was fully suspended because he was a first offender and was cooperative with police, among other factors.
Nobody was hurt in this incident, he said.
“The defendant has plainly fallen from grace, no doubt suffered some humiliation and I have no doubt has had difficulty in coming to terms with his actions which I am satisfied were out of character that evening.”