Police v Lologo [2013] WSSC 107 (23 September 2013)

SUPREME COURT OF SAMOA

Police v Lologo [2013] WSSC 107

Case name: Police v Lologo

Citation: [2013] WSSC 107

Decision date: 23 September 2013
Parties:
POLICE v FIALOGO LOLOGO, female of Fasitoo-uta and Salelologa Savaii.

Hearing date(s):

File number(s):

Jurisdiction: Criminal

Place of delivery: Mulinuu

Judge(s): Justice Nelson

On appeal from:

Order:
Representation:
L Taimalelagi for prosecution

Catchwords:

Words and phrases:

Legislation cited:

Cases cited:

Summary of decision:

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF SAMOA
HELD AT MULINUU

BETWEEN:

THE POLICE

Prosecution

AND:

FIALOGO LOLOGO, female of Fasitoo-uta and Salelologa Savaii.
Defendant

Counsel: L Taimalelagi for prosecution
Defendant unrepresented

Sentence: 23 September 2013

SENTENCE

The defendant faces seven (7) counts of theft as a servant and five (5) counts of false accounting. She is charged under the old Crimes Legislation which says theft as a servant has a seven (7) year maximum penalty and false accounting a five (5) year maximum penalty. She is a 24 year old solo mother of Fasitoo-uta and Salelologa with two children She was at the time of the offending employed as a cashier by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment responsible for collecting money and issuing receipts.

The summary of facts from the police which the defendant has accepted says that at the material times she received monies from customers of the Ministry and altered the amounts in the receipt to smaller amounts and kept the balance. She did this on seven separate occasions. In this way stole a total sum of $3,250.00 over a three month period. Her thefts were discovered when Treasury reconciliations revealed the discrepancies. The matter was reported to the police and the defendant has subsequently pleaded guilty to twelve counts against her.

The defendant is in prison at present for a different matter but that is not relevant to these thefts. You will therefore be treated as a person who appears with a clean record. I am sure you have heard from the sentencing remarks in previous cases the penalty for this sort of offending. I do not have to repeat those. It is in your favour that you are a person who has pleaded guilty and that you have a good clean record. Also in your favour is the fact that you have pleaded guilty Fialogo and saved the courts time.

The prosecution have requested that you be given a sentence of at least 12 months imprisonment. In my assessment this sort of offending would warrant a period of at least 12 months possibly up to 18 months imprisonment. I will however because of your present circumstances give you the minimum rather than the higher penalty.

For these offences Fialogo you will be convicted and sentenced to 12 months imprisonment. But because this offending is different from the present prison term you are serving it means that you will only serve this term when you finish serving your other term. Twelve (12) months in prison however is the total term in respect of all twelve charges.

.........................

JUSTICE NELSON