BY MELVILLE TITIULU
Magistrate court yesterday convicted a man accused of breaching traffic laws to one month and 27 days and then released him because he had already served that jail term in custody.
Gary Maurifia, 22, of Arabala Village, South Malaita, Malaita Province was charged with three separate offences committed at the same time.
The offences included: using an unlicensed motor vehicle contrary to section 7(1) of the Road Transport Act, driving without a valid driver’s license contrary to section 20 (1) of the Road Transport Act and giving a false name to police authorities contrary to section 177 (2) of the Police Act.
Principal Magistrate Emily Zazariko Pakoa presided over the matter when it came for sentencing judgement yesterday.
Mrs Pakoa told the defendant that due to a high prevalence of unlicensed motor vehicles in the country, the court needs to send a clear message across to the people.
The defendant was given one month and 27 days for each count of charges to be served concurrently.
The sentence came about after court took into account the defendant’s personal circumstances in light of the seriousness of the offence.
However, the Principal Magistrate took into account the fact that the defendant had already served that term of one month and 27 days while in custody. Thus, he was released yesterday.
On November 7, 2025, between 7.30-8.30am at the Lawson Tama Road junction area, officers of the Police traffic department were conducting an operation purposely to check for expired vehicles and lookout for drivers under the influence of alcohol.
The police officers spotted the defendant driving an expired vehicle without a valid driver’s licence.
At the station, the accused provided misleading information claiming to be someone by the name of David Maurifai, which was not his real name.
He was released on bail to appear in court on a later date. However, he failed to appear in court that day.
A warrant of arrest was issued for the defendant, which led to his rearrest on February 26, 2026. That was also when he revealed his true identity to the police.
Constable Sam Gii represented the office of the Police Prosecutions (OPP) and Trevor Tukochi from the Public Solicitor’s Office represented Mr Garry Maurifai.
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