In the High Court of Kiribati
Criminal Jurisdiction
Held at Betio
Republic of Kiribati

Criminal Case No. 44 of 2003

The Republic

vs

Mikaere Iotebwa

For the Republic: Ms Pole Tebao
For the Accused: Mr. Aomoro Amten

SENTENCE

Mikaere Iotebwa: You have pleaded guilty to defiling a girl under 13 years of age. The victim was only 8 years old. The maximum penalty for this crime is imprisonment for life.

Mr. Amten told me that you do not fully remember what happened but that the Summary of Facts which the Director Public Prosecution handed to me is accurate.

You are 20 years old, the fifth of eight children in your family. You left school after Form III in 2000. You are unemployed. You recently married and your wife is 3 months pregnant.

After the incident your uncle and his wife, with whom you live in an extended family, apologized to the parents of the little girl. 

Ms Tebao asked me not to take the apology into account. As a rule I do not regard an apology by relatives to be much in the favour of someone charged with a crime. I do not give it weight in your case. 

Your crime was a violent one. You had been drinking sour toddy for 2 days and were returning to sleep in the same maneaba as the victim and her brothers and sister. You carried her away by force despite her protests and threatened to kill her. She knew who you were. You laid her on the ground. You put your penis into her vagina and into her mouth and kissed her vagina. From the injuries which she suffered you must have been violent. The doctor who examined and treated her described the injuries:

"Her vulva was bleeding with bilateral severe laceration of perineum. During operation, I found her vagina was severe dilated and vaginal wall was lacerated roughly. Several places of vaginal wall still bleeding. All her posterior vaginal wall and anterior wall of rectum and anus were lacerated severely with big lacerated wound about 4cm long. In order to ensure success of repair colonstomy have to be made on her."

The Director Public Prosecutions said she has fully recovered from the injuries. I do not know if she had mental or emotional injuries and whether she has recovered from them.

This was a most serious crime. Even taking into account that you have pleaded guilty and that this is your first offence, you must go to goal for some time.

You are sentenced to five years and six months imprisonment to run from last Monday 5th January when you went into custody.

Dated the 7th day of January 2004.

THE HON ROBIN MILLHOUSE QC
Chief Justice