Former Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama and suspended Police Commissioner Sitiveni Qiliho's lawyer Devanesh Sharma says they do not deserve a custodial sentence.
While making the mitigation submission in court this morning, Sharma says the starting point here is not jail sentence and in the worst case, it is a suspended sentence.
He says the sentence in both cases is less than 2 years.
Sharma says Acting Chief Justice Salesi Temo gave less credibility to the defence's evidence but it does not mean it's to be ignored.
He says the Magistrates Court has the totality of evidence and the High Court focused on the no case to answer ruling that had the prosecutors case but the Magistrates Court has the defence evidence as well.
State counsel Laisani Tabuakoro and Nancy Tikoisuva will deliver their sentencing submission after Sharma.
Bainimarama has been found guilty of one count of attempt to pervert the course of justice while Qiliho has been found guilty of one count of abuse of office.
According to the charges, Bainimarama sometime in July 2020 as the Prime Minister directed the Police Commissioner to stop the investigation into a police complaint, in the abuse of the authority of his office, which was an arbitrary act prejudicial to the rights of the University of the South Pacific which is the complainant.
For Qiliho’s charges, the charges say that Qiliho on the 15th of July, 2020 as the Police Commissioner directed the Director of the Criminal Investigations Department, Serupepeli Neiko and Inspector Reshmi Dass to stop investigations into the police complaint by the USP, in the abuse of the authority of his office, which was an arbitrary act prejudicial to the rights of USP.
Acting Chief Justice Salesi Temo had ruled last week that Bainimarama and Qiliho have to be sentenced by Magistrate Seini Puamau next Thursday.
Sharma's submission continues.
More to follow.
