BY ROMINAH FAKA

Three men accused of killing two complainants at Koivo village, Guadalcanal, will face court for a possible plea on July 25.

During the court session yesterday, state prosecutor Olivia Ratu Manu applied for a substitution of charges under section 201 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC).

 The charge against the three accused has been changed from attempted murder to murder.

The reason for the substitution is that one of the two complainants was pronounced dead after being admitted to the National Referral Hospital (NRH).

Manu informed the court that the only outstanding document from the police investigator is the autopsy report from Dr. Maraka, who is currently on annual leave in Choiseul.

 The prosecution requested a 14-day adjournment to liaise with the police investigator and contact Dr. Maraka to obtain the autopsy report.

The court has adjourned the case to July 25 for a possible plea on the amended charges and for the prosecution to serve the remaining documents to the defense counsel for arraignment.

BY ROMINAH FAKA

On Wednesday, the court found Harrison Forau guilty of one count of domestic violence and one count of cruelty to a child.

The court extended Forau’s remand warrant until July 17 for sentencing submissions from the crown and defense counsels.

Forau, currently serving a two-year and six-month prison sentence for raping a minor, faced these new charges and pleaded not guilty. The trial was conducted before Principal Magistrate Elma Veenah Rizzu Hilly.

The court heard that Forau, from NFD Area of Tulagi Township, Central Islands Province, psychologically abused his de facto wife by swinging a bush knife at her, causing her to be very frightened. On the same date, while heavily intoxicated, Forau took an infant child from the safe custody of his de facto wife and put human feces into the child’s mouth and over the child’s body.

The matter was reported to the police, leading to Forau’s arrest. The Police Prosecution Department appeared for the Crown, while the Public Solicitor’s Office represented Harrison Forau.

BY JOHN HOUANIHAU

Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele has said China is Solomon Islands’ largest trading partner.

The Government for National Unity and Transformation (GNUT) leader made the statement during his first keynote address at this year’s 46th Independence anniversary in Honiara.

He said that the GNUT Government is already collaborating with the private sector and smallholder farms during the first hundred days.

“We have made great steps in progressing market access opportunities with the People’s Republic of China with exports already possible for several products including noni juice, roasted Cocoa, other value-added chocolate products, roasted coffee, and sawn timber.

“As it is with most countries in the Asia-Pacific region, China is our largest trading partner,” he said.

He said that the GNUT is expanding these products and has in the past week finalized tax-based discussions on product-specific sanitary and phytosanitary protocols.

“That will pay the way for exports of any aquatic products captured in the wild or cultured aquatics such as seaweed and roasted cocoa and coffee beans and spices such as turmeric, ginger, and chili,” said Manele.

“This afternoon (Monday 8th July) I will be leading a high-level delegation to China accompanied by several ministers. 

“We hope to finalise and sign the Memorandums of Understanding during this visit to enable the Solomon Islands to trade directly with China on these four additional product categories. We will continue to expand the commodities that we will export to China,” said the PM.

He stated that the GNUT hopes that farmers in rural areas can earn money by exporting these products to China.

He stressed that the government is trying to expand our economic base to involve the agriculture and fisheries sectors in international trade.

“Trade and investment are a vehicle to reinvigorate growth, inspire diversification of opportunities, and catalyze partnerships with the private sector.

“Our government’s policy of friends to all and enemy to none paves the way to tackle and enhance productive capacity and trade to achieve our development aims,” he said.

He said that the Government has started work on the country’s first-ever national export policy that will enable the Solomon Islands to export commodities in this evolving global economic environment and set a path towards diversification and a subsequent industrialisation policy.

“The institutional and policy guidelines will guide policymakers to enhance the role of trade as a key driver to economic growth and to raise the level of human development and improve living standards for Solomon Islanders.

“As you will all know, our narrow economic base is very vulnerable to external economic shocks.

“Therefore, this government is trying to broaden our economic base,” he said.

BY ROMINAH FAKA

Trial into the case of Stanley Gegesi, charged with one count of murder and one count of grievous harm has completed at the magistrate court.

Yesterday the accused opted to remain silent to the charge of murder, and to the charge of grievous harm Mr Gegesi pleaded guilty.

Court adjourned the matter for tomorrow July 12 for defence to submit the closing sentencing submissions.

Court heard the incident occurred on the night of August 11, 2023 at Tausoro, Turarana area, Guadalcanal province.

Prosecution alleged that on the night of the incident between 10pm and 12 midnight, Gegesi entered the elderly couple’s house.

The couple were lying in their bed when Gegesi went into their house and demanded the couple for a large sum of money.

The elderly woman got her purse and gave $100 to the accused but he insisted for $4,000.

Gegesi then grabbed a bush knife and cut the elderly man (first victim) with it.

He cut the elderly man’s left side head, backside and his right hand.

After the incident Gegesi escaped and went to the house of the second victim.

The second victim was sleeping when the accused cut him with the knife.

During that time, several men started throwing stones at the accused.

So, he escaped along the Turarana River down to Turarana village where he joined a dance that was going on in the village.

The villagers who chased the accused called that community by mobile phones to alert them about the said incident occurred that night.

The group of men of Purakachere Village then caught the accused and held him until police arrived at the village.

The first victim has died, allegedly due to the injuries sustained from Gegesi’s slaughter.

The second victim was taken to hospital and has been in a critical condition because of the cut the accused did to him.

Andrew Kelesi appears for the crown and Benham Ifuto’o appears for Gegesi.

BY ROMINAH FAKA

The trial involving five people, including newly elected Member of Parliament for North East Guadalcanal Jamie Lency Vokia, is scheduled to commence next week from July 15-19 before Chief Magistrate Emma Garo.

During the final interim-mention in court yesterday, prosecution informed court that there had been a change of prosecutors.

Initially, the Director of Public Prosecutions was the counsel in carriage of the file. However, due to a family issue that required his attentions, the court vacated the previous trial date and reschedule it for July 15.

The Director of Public Prosecution reassigned another prosecutor within their office to handle the case, and crown have no issues with the trial commencement date.

The defence counsel for the five accused also informed the court that they have no objections to the trial commencing next week and the five accused were all appeared in court.  

Court suspended to July 15 for trial. Bail for all accused extends.

Ethel Claudia Lency Vokia and his co-accused Jaimmie Lency Vokia and Rose Tala and Polycrap Peresini and Beason Moses are jointly charged for one count of conspiracy to defeat justice and interference with the witness, contrary to section 116 (b) of the Penal code cap 26 to be read with section 21 (a) of the Penal Code (cap 26).

Ethel is also facing a separate charge of Election Bribery contrary to section 126 (1) (a) and (b) (ii) of the Electoral Act 2018.

It was alleged that Jamie obstructed the due course of justice and Ethel and the three other defendants aided and abetted him between 20 January 2020 and 27 January 2020 in Honiara, preventing a woman who was lawfully bound to appear and give evidence as a witness from appearing and giving evidence at the High Court.

This was during a High Court hearing of the Election Petition case lodged against Jamie.

Jamie lost his seat after the High Court found him guilty of three counts of briberies at the Election Petition hearing in 2020.

A bye-election was held later in 2020, which Jamie’s wife Ethel win the Parliament seat for Northeast Guadalcanal.

It was further alleged that on 7 January 2018, Ethel gave $250 to a person with the intention of influencing that person and two others to vote for Jamie at the 2019 National General Election.

Vernon Taupongi from Public Prosecution Office appears for crown and Walter Rotumana of Rano & Company appears for all accused.