Solomone Fonokalafi (45) was sentenced to two-years eight-months imprisonment for causing serious bodily harm, when he beat his wife's hands and feet with a hammer, while tying her down at a home in Fo’ui last year. 

Lord Chief Justice Whitten KC sentenced him on 21 October at the Supreme Court in Nuku'alofa, after he pleaded guilty to the charge.

The offending was in 2021, as a result of continuing problems in their marriage, the complainant left the family home.

On 19 November 2021, the complainant was staying with her one-year-old son at Pahu.

The court was told that while walking along the road, the complainant noticed a white taxi stop in which the defendant was seated. He told her repeatedly to get into the car. When the complainant asked the defendant where they were going, he told her they were going to town to talk because he was going overseas for seasonal work.

The complainant got into the vehicle. Instead of going to town, and despite the complainant’s repeated objections, the taxi driver drove the two to their residence at Fou’i. Once inside the house, the defendant became angry because he had been told that his wife was living with a man. When the complainant denied the accusation, the defendant began swearing at her.

The offence then occured and out of fear the complainant complied as the defendant tied her hands and feet and told her to remain silent. He left the room and returned with cello-tape which he used to tape her mouth.

The defendant then beat the complainant’s feet and hands with a hammer. The complainant suffered excruciating pain and struggled to breathe.

Later, the defendant left the residence to pick up their son from Pahu. While he was gone, the complainant managed to seek assistance from neighbours, and she was rushed to hospital. When she was examined, her limbs were reported to be grossly swollen and x-rays revealed several fractures (open, comminute and displaced) to her hands and feet.

When he was apprehended, the defendant cooperated and admitted to the offending, said the Lord Chief Justice.

“The defendant's previous convictions, spanned from 1995 to date, for drugs, theft and housebreaking and violence. The more serious and relevant include: 2010 for attempted murder-five-years imprisonment with the final year suspended; and 2014 for assault, one-year probation.

“Aggravating features of the offending from the Crown was its seriousness, the serious injuries sustained requiring the complainant to be hospitalised and admitted to the surgical ward and the assault on his wife constitutes a gross breach of trust.

“Meanwhile, the defendant told the probation officer that his wife introduced him to drugs and drug dealing and that during their marriage, both used and supplied illicit drugs through their own different networks.”

Barbaric

The maximum statutory penalty for causing serious bodily harm is 5-years’ imprisonment.

The Lord Chief Justice in assessing the seriousness of the offending said one exceptional feature was the complainant’s apparent consent to the assault.

He said it is significant that, according to Ms Mangisi [defence counsel], the defendant always intended to plead guilty to this charge but for differences about certain particulars.

“In other words, it does not appear that he or his counsel ever contemplated defending the charge on the basis of the complainant's consent. Yet, it is now raised as a purported factor of mitigation,” he said.

"There has been no suggestion, and nor could there be, that the complainant’s consent to the injuries inflicted by the defendant as punishment for her marital indiscretions ought be regarded as a new exception to the general rule. The defendant’s actions, regardless of his wife’s conduct, were cruel and barbaric. Such behaviour has no place in Tongan society or its marriage norms. That view is consistent with public policy as expressed by Parliament when it enacted the Family Protection Act which seeks to prohibit domestic violence in all its various forms."

"On the contrary, the fact that the complainant was the defendant’s wife is, as was submitted by the Crown with apparent acceptance by Ms Mangisi, a serious circumstance of aggravation not least because of the breach of trust involved. That she had also breached the defendant’s trust by confessing her infidelity cannot excuse nor does it diminish the seriousness of the offending, he said.

“The defendant’s use of a hammer after he tied the complainant’s hands and feet and taped her mouth are also grave circumstances of aggravation."

Having regarded to those features of the offending, the protracted nature of the assault, the significant injuries suffered by the complainant, the defendant’s previous convictions for violence, the statutory maximum penalty and the comparable sentences and principles, he set a starting point of 3 years and 4 months (or 40 months) imprisonment.

"I note that according to the defendant, the parties’ marriage has now irretrievably broken down with no present prospect of reconciling. While both are struggling with substance abuse, that may be for the best. The material before the Court did not allude to any arrangements in place for the care of the children."

The Lord Chief Justice sentenced him to two-years eight-months imprisonment [32-months] with the final 12-months suspended for two-years, on conditions.

"Failure to comply with any of those conditions may result in the suspension being rescinded, in which case the defendant will be required to serve the balance of his prison term."