The State v Rocky Walesa Peraki (2003) N2463

• Jurisdiction: Papua New Guinea
• Judge: Jalina J
• Judgment Date: 18 September 2003
• Citation: (2003) N2463
• Court: National Court
• Year: 2003
• Judgement Number: N2463

Full Title: The State v Rocky Walesa Peraki (2003) N2463

National Court: Jalina J

Judgment Delivered: 18 September 2003

N2463

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

[In the National Court of Justice]

CR 1371 of 2003

THE STATE

-v-

ROCKY WALESA PERAKI

Wabag : Jalina J

2003 : 25th August

: 18th September

Criminal Law – Stealing – Sentence – Plea of guilty – Stealing of State Vehicle by former State employee with spare key – Vehicle stolen as retaliation for refusal to refund personal expenditures and underpayment of entitlements – Vehicle hidden in another province for almost two years – parts of vehicle stolen – Recovery and Restoration of vehicle at huge public expense – Unilateral action seeking to hold the State at ransom – need for deterrence – Custodial sentence necessary - Criminal Code Act s.372(1) and (10).

Case cited:

Wellington Belawa –v- The State [1988-89] PNGLR 496

S. Kesno for the State

P. N’dranoh for the Prisoner

18th September 2003

JALINA J: The prisoner Rocky Walesa Peraki of Lakuni Village, Kandep, in the Enga Province has been charged that he on 3rd July 2001 at Pina, stole a Toyota Land Cruiser Utility Registration No. PAC 397 valued at K80,000.00 the property of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea. He has pleaded guilty to the charge.

Facts put to the court by the State Prosecutor for purposes of arraignment as well as evidence on file shows that the prisoner was previously employed by the Porgera District Administration as a driver for 2 years but was terminated for misconduct relating to his employment and paid his entitlements. Though he came from the Kandep District he did not return to Kandep but remained in Porgera after his termination.

On 2nd July 2001 he sent a note to the Deputy District Administrator requesting assistance to have him together with his personal effects transported to Birip, his wife’s village, which was not far from Wabag Town.

So on 3rd July 2001 he was assisted from Porgera to Birip Village with some of his clansmen but when he arrived at the house his wife was living in, he was told that she had gone to Pina with the house key so the prisoner insisted that the driver drive him to Pina to locate his wife. Pina is a fair distance away from the main Okuk Highway.

After they had reached Pina, the driver got off the vehicle, pulled out the key from the ignition and went away to attend to the call of nature. The prisoner then got into the vehicle, started it with a spare key he had and drove off leaving the driver stranded. The driver had to then walk all the way to the main Okuk Highway to seek help and reported the matter to Wabag Police.

The vehicle was not seen until March 2003 when it was recovered in the Southern Highlands Province.

The value of the property stolen being in excess of K1,000.00 the penalty would be seven (7) years imprisonment as set out in s.372(1) and (10) of the Criminal Code Act.

In addition to his expression of remorse during his statement on the allocutus, he tendered an Affidavit of Defence in which he sets out his reasons for taking the vehicle. They include his termination from employment without proper notice, underpayment of his entitlements by K1,368.00 after termination and his expenditure of approximately K8,116.00 of his own money on maintenance of a state-owned house at the direction of the former District Administrator.

In his submission in mitigation of sentence the prisoner’s lawyer Mr. N’dranoh has pleaded to this court to exercise its discretion under s.19 of the Criminal Code and impose a lenient sentence in view of his personal antecedents, his plea of guilty, his expression of remorse, the stolen property having been returned and this case being one that is not among the most serious stealing cases.

He went on to submit relying on the sentencing guidelines set by the Supreme Court in Wellington Belawa –v- The State [1988-89] PNGLR 496 for offences of dishonesty that a sentence of between 3 to 5 years would be appropriate.

Mr. Kesno for the State has however submitted that a custodial sentence be imposed as this particular case has aggravating factors.

In support of his submission, Mr. Kesno tendered an affidavit from one Andrew Tei, the Officer in Charge of Criminal Investigation Division (CID) at Porgera Police Station. It shows that apart from the vehicle evading both Wabag and Mendi police, the vehicle was damaged beyond repair and that some of its parts were missing when it was finally located in March 2003. The invoices from Ela Motors showed the final repair bill to the State at K22,799.93.

Further more, a report dated 19th July 2001 from the Deputy District Administrator, Mr. Peter Mokai to the Porgera District Administrator and CID in...