Results for Supreme Court

Siaosi Brown (22) was sentenced to 18-months imprisonment for possession of 222.69 grams of cannabis seized at a home in Fanga.

Viliami Halalilo and Tukumo’ui Havea have been found guilty of common assault, when they punched and kicked a 21-year-old victim in Neiafu, Vava’u. “They indulged in sheer hooliganism and behaviour and not keeping with the dignity and high standards of the Tongan Police Force,” said the Supreme Court judge.

Nesiasi Kamoto (49) received a suspended sentence for discharging a .22 rifle to intimidate his relatives, who were living at his tax allotment in Tofoa.

Siaosi Brown (31) was found guilty of possession of illicit drugs, namely 222.69 grams of cannabis seized during a police search at a residence at Fanga. He will be sentenced on 11 November. In delivering his verdict Mr Justice Cooper was critical of the Crown prosecution's attempts to to call a convicted drug user to attempt to undermine the evidence of two police officers. “That sort of error needs to be properly understood so it is not repeated,” he warned.

A pregnant mother of four, Kahealani Tonga (38) was sentenced to 14-months imprisonment, which was fully suspended, for possession of 2.09 grams of methamphetamine. “Though she may not have been the person making the money from the deal she was facilitating this devastating trade, which is a scourge that destroys the minds and lives of so many people in Tonga," said the judge.

Two women, including a former police officer, who advertised an illegal pyramid scheme, were ordered by the Supreme Court to pay $4,000 each or in default face imprisonment. "This sentence should act as a warning that pyramid and/or ponzi schemes are illegal in Tonga and anyone thinking of operating such a scheme will face severe punishment," warned the Judge.

A 62-year old man was sentenced to seven-years imprisonment for six counts of indecent assault of a minor aged 12 years old, on Tongatapu.

Rodney Toki (28) who is currently serving a lengthy jail term for a string of armed robberies, at Chinese-run shops in Tonga, has been sentenced to five-years and four-months imprisonment for other offences in a crime spree that spanned from late July until the end of August 2021.

Nganga e Hau Lao (55) received a suspended sentence of one year for cultivation of 43 cannabis plants seized at his home in Tatakamotonga. Police raided the defendant's home address and found him sitting on the floor of his living room reading the bible. The cannabis plants were found growing behind his home.