Home | Databases | WorldLII | Search | Feedback Supreme Court of Samoa

Police v Aneti [2024] WSSC 140 (16 December 2024)

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF SAMOA
Police v Aneti & Anor [2024] WSSC 140 (16 December 2024)

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF SAMOA
HELD AT MULINUU

BETWEEN:

P O L I C E

Informant

AND:

TU’I ANETI & SISI ANETI

Defendants

Counsel: Attorney General’s Office for Prosecution
Defendants appear unrepresented

Date: 16 December 2024

SENTENCE OF TUATAGALOA J

1. Both defendants appear for sentencing having been jointly for burglary and theft while employed by the Blakelock family at Ululoloa. The maximum penalty for the offence of burglary is maximum 10 years^[1] and theft depending on the value of the property stolen to a maximum of 7 years.^[2]
2. According to the summary of facts provided by Prosecution, both defendants were employed in August 2022 to look after the cattle and garden and were not allowed to enter the victim’s home or the storage room. Inside the storage room were boxes of corned beef, tin fish and fine mats. However, both defendants while working for the victim observed that when the grounds men came to mow the lawn, they would leave the storage room door opened as they carry out their work. It was then that both defendants decided to remove some of the properties from inside the storage room. On two different occasions between 31^st December 2022 and 30^th April 2023 both defendants entered the storage room and removed 12 boxes of corned beef and 4 ietoga (fine mats). The defendants would then sell the boxes of corned beef to a nearby shop and sold the ietoga to different persons. Each ietoga was valued at $2,500 while each box of corned beef is valued at $38. The total value of stolen goods is $10,456.00.
3. Both defendants are sisters and are 33 and 29 years old. They originally pleaded not guilty but they vacated their not guilty pleas to guilty on 8 November 2024 when the prosecutions amended their charges accordingly. The defendants have no previous convictions.

Discussion.

4. The most aggravating of the offending is that the offending was carried out not once but twice and the total value of the goods stolen of $10,456.⁰⁰. This is a significant amount.
5. It appears that there was a high level of pre-meditation or planning involved by the defendants as to the time to access the storage room, what to remove, where they would hide it and when to sell and to whom they would sell it to. According to the Pre-Sentence Report (PSR) the defendants used the money to buy food and cigarettes and then split the remaining between the two of them. Their actions indicate a very serious breach of trust causing the owner not only a substantial loss in terms of money when valued but most importantly the significance and cultural value of the ietoga.
6. The only mitigating factors would be prior good characters of the defendants and their guilty pleas.
7. The Prosecution have referred to cases of similar circumstances and amounts and recommends for custodial with a starting point of two (2) to three (3) years. I agree with Prosecution and appropriate to the circumstances of the offending a starting point of thirty-six months (36) months or 3 years. I deduct 12 months for being first offenders and 3 months for their personal circumstances; this leaves 21 months. I then give 25% discount of 5 months for the guilty pleas. The end sentence is 16 months.

The end sentence

8. Both defendants are convicted and sentenced as follows:
   • (i) Burglary – 16 months’ imprisonment.
   • (ii) Theft – 16 months’ imprisonment.
9. The sentences are to be served concurrently less any time in custody.
   

JUSTICE TUATAGALOA

^[1] Crimes Act 2013, ss 33 & 174
^[2] Crimes Act 2013, ss. 161, 165(b) and 33.