$600 fine, 10 hours counseling for land corruption case
THE Acquisition Officer who falsified documents produced to the Ministry of Lands, Housing & Survey (MLHS) about land acquired for mining on Rennell island in Renbel Province in 2015 has been fined $600.
Principal Magistrate Tearo Beneteti yesterday also included 10 hours of counseling for the defendant 79-year-old Laury Penrose Palmer.
The maximum sentence for this offence is an imprisonment term of two years or a fine of $600.
Palmer was convicted and sentenced after he was found guilty after a trial of one count of Corrupt Practice.
Palmer has until 20 December to pay up the fine and failure to pay up by then, will result in an imprisonment term of two weeks.
Private lawyer Gabriel Suri, who filed an appeal against the judgement, informed the court he might be also be looking at including the sentence to the appeal.
Magistrate Beneteti imposed the $600 fine after she considered the age of the defendant, which she described as a vulnerable age, his current health status, the circumstances of this case, the aggravating features and the mitigating factors.
The accused is currently under medication and is suffering from pneumonia, hypertension and heart problems and other illnesses that affect his physical movement.
For the aggravating feature, the prosecution highlighted the impact the land acquisition has on the people on Rennell.
Magistrate Beneteti said when the acquisition of the land happened, people were actually affected in accessing the land as nature of land also changed, adding that after the acquisition, the mining operation actually happened and people became affected thereafter.
Magistrate Beneteti told Palmer that he was not responsible for the full extent of the impact.
She said Palmer was only responsible for the job that he has done which in her view was guilty of corrupt practices in the manner he executed his duties but added that he was responsible for everything that happened.
“For example, to say, if the mining company come in and do the damage, it is not your doing.”
Palmer was charged for the offence he committed in 2015 whereby he failed to post public notices at Lavangu, Teabamangau, Niupani, Tigoa Station and Kagua as required by the provisions of the Lands and Title Acts.
The court found after the trial that the public notices were never posted to inform the people from the concerned areas about his decisions.
Palmer, who is an acquisition officer (Agent of COL), was appointed as a Land Acquisuition Officer on 26 August 2014 by the Commissioner of Lands to acquire customary lands on West Rennell for mining.
According to Palmer’s record of interview with the Police, he said it was the Asia Pacific Investment Development (APID) Company lawyer who wrote to the Commissioner of Lands to appoint him as the Land Acquisition Officer for West Rennell.
The purpose of the acquisition was to allow APID to commence its mining operation.
Palmer, however, failed to post up the notices, whilst in his report, he falsely stated to the Commissioner of Lands that he did post the public notices.
By ASSUMPTA BUCHANAN
Newsroom, Honiara
Ruling on whether Moe murder case will be committed to HC today
RULING on whether the matter of a man facing trial for the murder of his cousin brother in the Russell Islands in Central Province in August will be committed to the High Court for trial will be delivered today.
This followed a Short Form Preliminary Inquiry conducted on the matter of the defendant Jonathan Felega yesterday.
The inquiry was conducted after Felega entered a not guilty plea to the charge of murder.
Principal Magistrate Fatima Taeburi, having received the inquiry depositions from the prosecution, adjourned the matter till today for the ruling.
This is in relation to the murder allegation that occurred at about 1am on 11 August on Moe Island in the Russell Islands.
It was alleged that Felega and his young nephew were on their way back to Minisi Village from Sagelua Village when they met the deceased coming towards them holding burning firewood.
The deceased was walking along the road where there was a cliff.
Felega allegedly went and assaulted the deceased before pushing the deceased off a high cliff.
Thereafter, he went down the cliff to the deceased and wiped blood off him before getting assistance from people in his village.
By ASSUMPTA BUCHANAN
Solomon Star, Honiara
Man fronts court over viral clip
A MAN who has been arrested and charged over the recent video clip that went viral on facebook has appeared in the Honiara Magistrate Court yesterday.
Charles Manaba is facing one count of Compelled Sexual Intercourse contrary to section 136G (a) (b) Sexual Amendment Act 2016.
His matter was mentioned yesterday and further adjourned to December 20 for further mention.
The court heard investigation into his matter was yet to be completed and that partial disclosures were served on a lawyer in the Public Solicitor’s Office (PSO).
Manaba was charged in relation to the allegation on 19 November 2023 at the Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) hillside in Honiara.
The prosecution alleged that he took a video of a female and male and forced them to have sexual intercourse in front of the camera.
The video clip went viral on the social media platform facebook shortly after.
After the clip went viral, police lodged an investigation and appealed to social media users to stop sharing the video.
“If someone sends the video to you, please delete it.
“This will help the victims of trauma,” an earlier statement from the Police Media Unit stated.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) is prosecuting in the matter of Manaba.
By ASSUMPTA BUCHANAN
Solomon Star, Honiara
