By Linny Folau

Sione Pongi (36) is serving 16-months imprisonment for drugs offences, after the Supreme Court replaced his original 10-months imprisonment imposed by the Magistrate‘s Court, in a successful appeal by the Crown against sentence.

Justice Cooper, in written reasons for his decision, ordered that the sentence imposed by a Magistrate (under section 80 of the Magistrates Court Act) be replaced by a term of imprisonment for 16 months. That is made up of 10 months' imprisonment on the suspended sentence, which he activated because the accused breached it when committing this offence CR 190/2020. This is followed by a term of six months' imprisonment for the instant offences CR 607/23 and CR 608/2023.

On 8 December  2023 Mr. Pongi appeared before the Magistrate's Court at Fasi and pleaded guilty to two offences, that on 5 October 2023 he was in possession 0.16 grams methamphetamine at Vaini. The maximum sentence is a fine of $10,000 and, or three years' imprisonment; and he was also in possession of a pipe to smoke illicit drug for which the maximum sentence is a fine of $10,000 and, or three years' imprisonment. His case was then adjourned for sentence to 15 December 2023. 

Mr. Pongi had two prior convictions. This was an offence of possession 0.53 grams methamphetamine. The other was said to be an offence where Mr. Pongi interfered with the work carried out by police concerning an investigation into illicit drugs.

On 28 July 2022, he was sentenced to 10 months' imprisonment, suspended for two-years. The offences committed in October 2023 put him in breach of the suspended sentence passed in July 2022.

Then on 15 December 2023 the Magistrate passed a sentence of six months' imprisonment for possession of the methamphetamine, after reducing the starting point of 12 months by half to reflect his cooperation with the police and the responsibility he has raising three young children; with two months' imprisonment concurrent for possession of the drug utensils.

The Magistrate then activated the 10 months suspended imprisonment sentence to run concurrent with the sentence for new offences, resulting in a total of 10 months' imprisonment, stated the judge.

In its Notice of Appeal filed in January, the Crown submitted there should be a different approach to the application of the totality principle in reaching the final sentence to be passed on Mr. Pongi.

Sentencing purposes

The judge stated the purposes of sentencing are: to punish, reduce crime, reform and rehabilitate and protect the public.

After all considerations, an offence of possession 0.16 grams methamphetamine merited a starting point of 6 months' imprisonment.

“Comparable sentences were also considered to reflect Mr. Pongi's consistent involvement in, and his previous convictions for drug related offences, that starting point is increased to one of nine months. That he cooperated with the police I respectfully consider irrelevant when in reality he was caught red handed,” he stated.

“I take the view his having young children dependent on him needs to be considered bearing in mind his continued offending. He was father to these same children when he received his first conviction for illicit drugs, for an offence. His being a father has not caused him to mend his ways and he has deliberately put his own right to parent his family in jeopardy by his own, criminal decisions.”

“In addition, it is relevant that he pleaded guilty at the first available opportunity. The formula used consistently in this Court is a discount of up to 30% for an early guilty plea. That is a sliding scale, reducing to 10% discount for a guilty plea on the day of trial; less than 10% if a defendant pleads guilty during trial. In this case a 30% discount is merited for his early guilty plea. That gives a sentence of six months imprisonment.

“This court concludes that a starting point of nine months imprisonment is appropriate for the offence of possession of the drug utensil...,” he stated.

"Firstly, these are unrelated offences; the case law suggests the sentences should run consecutive.

He said Mr. Pongi was given a chance to reform with the imposition of a suspended sentence in 2022 for his second criminal offence involving illicit drugs, committed in a relatively short period of time.

“If a defendant under a suspended sentence re-offends, there is a real need to consider the sentence for the new offence, or offences, being made consecutive to any activated portion of the suspended sentence. To do otherwise would tend Mr. Pongi's suspended sentence of 10 months is activated in whole and he is ordered to serve that term before he serve his 6-month sentence for the new offences.”

He then ruled for the overall sentence of 16 months effective from the date the Magistrate originally committed Mr. Pongi to prison, which was on 15 December 2023.