An 80-year-old man was sentenced to six-months imprisonment for one count of indecent assault of a young girl under the age of 12, at the Supreme Court in Nuku'alofa.

Hon. Mr Justice Cooper sentenced him earlier this month, after finding him guilty of the offence committed in 2021 on Tongatapu.

He also made an order under section 119 that no detail may be reported that leads to the identification of the victim in this case.

The defendant who represented himself needed assistance to ensure that he could hear properly.

The judge said there had to be a deterrent sentence passed.

"It cannot be right for old men to prey on children and use them sexually."

“In addition, the conclusion I reach is that the offence is so serious only prison sentence is appropriate, there should be a starting point of six-month's imprisonment,” said the judge.

"The most significant points in mitigation are the defendant's age and also that he has never offended before."

He said though plainly not a young man, the accused had not been in trouble all his life. The judge took into account his advanced age.

The accused was then sentenced to six-months sentence, which was fully suspended for two-years.