Regina v Wanga - Sentence [1994] SBHC 31; HC-CC 045 of 1993 (23 September 1994)

HIGH COURT OF SOLOMON ISLANDS

Civil Case No. 45 of 1993

REGINA

-v-

PHILIP WANGA

High Court of Solomon Islands
(Muria, CJ.)

Hearing: 22 September 1994
Sentence: 23 September 1994

DPP for Prosecution
B. Titiulu for Accused

MURIA CJ: You had been found guilty of the offence of embezzlement. This is a serious offence and as rightly stated by Mr. Titiulu, warrants custodial sentence.

You took the money which belong to your employer and you used it for yourself. Your conduct is the kind which destroys the trust that employers expected from their employees, particular senior ones, like yourself. This is the feature of the type of offence that accounts for its seriousness.

By pleading Not Guilty, the prosecution had to come to the court and prove your guilt. That is of course their duty under the law since you exercise your right under the law of maintaining your innocence until proved guilty.

However, as a matter of sentence, you lose the benefit of a guilty plea.

I bear in mind the fact that this offence occurred more than 2 years ago and the circumstances in your personal life have changed since then.

The important fact that greatly tells in your favour is that you have repaid the money in full 2 months after you used it. That was even before these proceedings had commenced against you.

I also bear in mind that you have lost your job as a result of this incident.

You have no job and you still have to fend for the children that you are looking after at the present.

I however cannot ignore the fact that in 1983, you had been found guilty of embezzlement. In fact you embezzled money from the firm of International Travel Agencies. You were employed as their International Travel Adviser. You did the same thing received money paid for airline tickets and made false invoices. You received the cash and instead of banking it, you kept it and said that you had not yet received the money for the tickets. This was basically what you did on this occasion as sell.

Although that was 11 years ago, this Court cannot ignore it.

However, I give you credit for staying out of trouble for the last 11 years.

Your case presents special circumstances which I take into account. The circumstances which I described earlier including your repayment of the money and the change in your personal situation are not necessarily mitigation but they assist the court in arriving at a proper sentence.

Taking all those matters into account, the appropriate sentence must be one of 18 months imprisonment.

In the circumstances as I have found, I will have that sentence suspended in full for one (1) year.

(G.J.B. Muria)
CHIEF JUSTICE