Charges laid against Fiji and British national Charlie Charters by FICAC has been amended after identifying two former FICAC officers alleged to have released internal information to Charters and the case has been transferred to the Fiji Police Force to ensure independence and avoid any perception of conflict of interest.
The matter was called before Suva Magistrate Shageeth Somaratne for a Pre-Trial Conference this morning.
FICAC informed the court of the recent stay application before the High Court and developments in those proceedings, including FICAC’s undertaking to file amended charges, identifying the former Commission officers alleged to be relevant to the charges.
FICAC says they have accordingly applied to amend the charges so that they reflect those identities and fairly disclose the case Charters is required to meet.
FICAC also confirmed that additional disclosure, including material relating to the extraction of data from Charters’ phone, had been served as part of its continuing duty of disclosure.
FICAC further applied for the matter to be transferred to the Fiji Police Force under section 13F of the FICAC Act, to ensure independence and avoid any perception of conflict of interest arising from the alleged involvement of former Commission officers.
Counsel for Charters Seforan Fatiaki did not object to the amendment application, while noting that the amendment or transfer could have been addressed earlier.
FICAC says any decision on whether the former FICAC officers will be charged now rests with the Fiji Police Force.
The matter has been adjourned to 29th of July.
