A case of mistaken identity which led to the charging of a 24 year old man who has been in custody for a robbery committed by another man was released from prison earlier this month.
Chief Justice his Honour Satiu Simativa Perese acknowledges the seriousness of the drug charges against Ioane Sefo, and the need to deter in this type of offending.

However his honour expressed concerns over the prosecution error in this case.
According to the sentencing and judgement noted the defendant was charged in October 2017, after a complaint was lodged against the defendant for allegedly stealing her phone.

A routine body search was conducted and police found narcotics wrapped in foil on the defendant.
The defendant pleaded guilty to the drug charges, but denied the robbery charges.
The Chief Justice says this matter occurred in October, 2017 however trial was not held until four years later, all while the defendant was held behind bars.

The Chief justice noted that he was troubled by the sentencing.
In his judgment the Chief Justice accepted the submission by defense lawyer, Charlie Vaai’sit’s not the defendant’s fault that he was charged and put in prison for charges relating to another Ioane Sefo.
Vaai added the burglary charges were refuted at the time the defendant was unrepresented, and the defendant continued to plead not guilty until prosecution identified their charging error and rectified the charging document.
During sentencing,the Chief Justice noted there is no doubt the possession of the 57 seeds of marijuana seeds is a serious matter.

However, he’s also concerned that there are special circumstances in this case for approaching the sentencing in a different way.
The defendant was then ordered to be released from prison and was given a supervision sentence for a period of 12 months for the drug charges.