The Speaker of the Tongan Parliament, Lord Lasike will appear at the Supreme Court in Nuku'alofa on September 30 on a charge of the unlawful possession of ammunition, .22 rifle bullets.

The count of unlawful possession of ammunition is related to two .22 rifle bullets found by police on June 28, 2010 during a search warrant conducted at a room, said to have been occupied by Lord Lasike, at his motel, Sandy Boyz in Nuku'alofa.

Preliminary inquiry

He was initially charged with three counts including possession of an unlawful arm without a license, importation of an arm without a license and unlawful possession of ammunition, at a Preliminary Inquiry before Magistrate Mafi on April 19.

The Magistrate on May 25 dismissed the first two counts of possession of an unlawful arm without a license and importation of an arm without a license, due to insufficient evidence provided by the Crown.

The Magistrate however, found there was sufficient evidence for the one count of unlawful possession of ammunition against the Speaker and ordered that the case be submitted to the Supreme Court for trial.

The Crown Prosecutor Sione Sisifa confirmed the arraignment date for 30 September.