The State v Kunija Osake (2003) N2380

• Jurisdiction: Papua New Guinea
• Citation: (2003) N2380
• Date: 22 May 2003
• Court: National Court
• Year: 2003

Full Title: The State v Kunija Osake (2003) N2380

National Court: Jalina J

Judgment Delivered: 22 May 2003

1 Criminal Law—Particular Offences—Rape—of 11 year old girl—Sentence—Aggravating factors—Young age of victim—Prisoner also in position of trust towards victim—Plea of guilty—First Offender—Prevalence of rape of girls of young age—Need for deterrence—Sentence of 18 years appropriate—Criminal Code s347.

2 The State v Peter Kaudik [1987] PNGLR 201, The State v Kenneth Penias [1994] PNGLR 48, James Mora Meaoa v The State [1996] PNGLR 280 and Lawrence Hindemba v The State (1998) SC593 referred to

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Jalina J: This prisoner has pleaded guilty to committing rape upon the victim in her parents house at Wahuto Village, Asaro, in the Eastern Highlands Province on the night of 20 April 2000. She was then aged about eleven (11) years and was a student at Anengu Community School also in the Asaro area.

According to the victim's evidence which is contained in her statement and the prisoner's responses when questioned by police during the record of interview, it appears that the prisoner was married to one of the victim's sisters and at that time his family was accommodated by the victim's family as he was in the process of building a new house.

On the night in question, the victim was sleeping alone; her parents having gone to spend the night with another family. So the prisoner was in a position of trust towards the victim when he committed this crime. She was awaken by his penis in her vagina although initially she was fast asleep and did not realise him get on top of her and insert his erected penis into her vagina. He woke up early in the morning and left the house. She soon found herself being unable to walk properly. She found also that her skirt and shirt were stained with blood. She changed into clean clothes and then hung her stained clothes on the laundry line...