R v Roroi [2021] SBHC 89; HCSI-CRC 103 of 2018 (20 September 2021)

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Case name:	R v Roroi

Citation:

Date of decision:	20 September 2021

Parties:	Regina v Ben Roroi

Date of hearing:

Court file number(s):	103 of 2018

Jurisdiction:	Criminal

Place of delivery:

Judge(s):	Maina; PJ

On appeal from:

Order:	1. The accused is sentence to 5 years’ imprisonment, 2. The time spent in custody to deducted from the sentence, 3. No further order

Representation:	Kelesi A E for Crown Ifuto’o B for Defendant

Catchwords:

Words and phrases:

Legislation cited:	Penal Code S 224 (a), S 215 (a)

Cases cited:

You, Ben Roroi was convicted on alternative verdict of the charge of intentionally causing grievous harm contrary to section 224 (a) of the Penal Code after the trail on Attempt to murder under section 215 (a) of the Penal Code.

This section 224 (a) of the Penal Code provide the any person found guilty and convicted under this section is guilty of a felony, and shall be liable to imprisonment for life.

The Accused Ben Roroi from Rorongo Village, South Malaita is related to Complainant as his first cousin sister;

The accused had stopped the men who were allowed by the complainant to cut the trees on a land. The Accused later learned that the men continued to cut the trees and process them for timbers.

On 4^th April 2017, the accused was very angry on this attitude of his cousin sister and so he took a bush knife and went to the Complainant at her residence. The Complainant was in the house and when she saw the Accused coming to her with the knife, she ran away.

The Accused chased her and when the Complainant slipped over the ground, the Accused reached her and cut her with the bush knife. She sustained injuries and airlifted by helicopter to Honiara on urgent evacuation to the NRH on the same day.

The injuries were the cutting of the victim’s arm, fine deep cut at the left arm bone.

These are the seriousness of the injuries sustained from the attacks i.e. deep cut at the left arm bone, use of weapon, multiple injuries, accused is a closed relative to the complainant.

The woman is naturally weak from man and the fact she fell or slipped over on the ground show she could not resist such force or aggressive from the accused.

In assessing these features of aggravation against the facts, a weapon was used to challenge the victim. The evidence described how the victim resisted the accused’s challenge with the bush knife that resulted to the serious injuries to her.

The accused is 55 years at the time of the offence and married with 7 children, no previous conviction and subsistence farmer.

It is interesting to note from the defence’s sentence submission for the court to take into account the fact that the accused was found guilty and convicted of the lesser offence following a trial.

However, a proposal of guilt-ridden put to the Crown in 2019 but was not accepted to an extend is not lesser offence as both offences carry the penalties of shall be liable to imprisonment for life. If a credit of guilty plea to be given it may not be considered for such a situation which I will do in the circumstance of this case.

The accused was arrested on 4^th April 2017 and his case has been with Police and the court he has been in custody since then. That undeniably be considered for reducing the sentence.

After considering all of the mitigating, aggravating factors and the delay, referred to I have decided that the accused’s time in custody and waiting for his case to be heard or dispose should be sufficient for accused sentence. The Accused’s time in custody is now 4 years, 6 months 9 days.

High Court of Solomon Islands

R v Roroi [2021] SBHC 89; HCSI-CRC 103 of 2018 (20 September 2021)