Manavahetau Fua’eiki (43) is serving a total sentence of three-years nine-months imprisonment for two separate cases, that included charges of serious housebreaking and theft of firearms, which he committed in 2021, while he was on a suspended sentence for drug offences. This suspended sentence was activated.
Hon. Mr Justice Cooper sentenced him last month to two-years imprisonment for three counts of serious housebreaking, theft and possessing a firearm without a licence, at the Supreme Court in Nuku'alofa. He pleaded guilty in June 2022.
The offending was between 9 and 20 December, 2021 when he broke into Mr. Hu'ia's house at Pili in Nuku'alofa. Hu'ia was abroad in the United States, and his house was cared for by Hivafo'ou Taukei'aho.
The break in was discovered on the afternoon of 20 December, when Mr. Taukei'aho went to check the property.
The judge said that specifically two rooms had been entered and, from them, a .22 rifle and a 12 gauge shotgun, each said to be worth $3,000 pa'anga, as well a plastic bag that contained 200 packets of tobacco, said to have a value of $1,500, were all taken.
On 14 January 2022, Fua'eiki handed himself in to the police station in relation to these offences.
In his interview by Tonga Police, he said that he had entered the property through a broken window.
He took the firearms from a cupboard and the tobacco from a bin where it was being stored.
He also told Police that he did this because a man called Leka, who co-owns a vehicle with him, had told him to steal the firearms, so that he could release the vehicle back to Fua'eiki.
The tobacco he kept for himself, telling the police it was his share in the housebreaking. This he sold on to a Chinese shop.
Through Police enquiries the police established the 12 gauge shotgun was sold to Kelekolio Langi and they were able to recover it. The .22 rifle was never recovered nor the tobacco.
Sentencing
The judge said his attention was drawn to the fact that on 1 April 2021, Fua'eiki was sentenced to one-year and nine-months' imprisonment suspended for three-years, on conditions.
"The instant offences were committed during the operational period of that suspended sentence. It is submitted the whole of that sentence should be activated to run consecutive to the sentence for the house breaking and associated offences."
On the drugs, he was sentenced by former Justice Niu for two separate offences of possession methamphetamine (one occurring on bail) and possession of one round of ammunition
On 20 September 2021 that sentence was reviewed by the Court of Appeal, the prosecution having appealed it arguing it was unduly lenient.
The Court of Appeal granted the appeal so as to alter the sentence, imposing at least a partial term of imprisonment in principle. They put that into effect
"...were it not for one important factor. Mr. Fua'eiki has completed his sentence of community service and the Salvation Army courses...in the circumstances, we consider it would be unduly harsh to require him to serve, in addition, a sentence of imprisonment."
His original sentence was then suspended for three-years on conditions that he does not commit any offending within that suspension period, which he did.
The Appeal Court was clear that if Fua'eiki failed to comply with it, he will be required to serve the full term of his imprisonment in addition to the sentence of community service.
That was what the President of the Court of Appeal stated on 20 September 2021 and within two months of that, Mr. Fua'eiki was breaking into Mr. Hu'ia's house and stealing his firearms and the substantial amount of tobacco.
The Court of Appeal were very clear in their warning and, effectively they also had given him a further chance, he said.
"One ignores court bail, then a suspended sentence and then a warning from the President of the Court of Appeal and keep committing criminal offences at one's peril."
He was then sentenced to two-years for the housebreaking, theft and possession firearm without a licence.
That sentence will be served, after he completes his term of one-year and nine-months for the two offences of possession of methamphetamine and possession of ammunition, which was activated for breaching a condition of his suspended sentence. The total sentence is three-years and nine-months' imprisonment, ordered the judge.
