Deidre Tautua – Fanene
A former Principal Correction Officer for female prisoners is cleared by the Supreme Court of charges related to tins of herring that went missing from work.
Hilda Moelasi Saunoa, 40, of Salelologa and Tulaele was charged with one count of theft as a servant in 2016.
According to the summary of facts at Tafaigata on the 7th of October 2016 the accused being a servant of the Samoa Prison and Correction Service stole 5 cases of cans of fish valued at $43.50 each to a total value of $217.50, being the property of her employer namely the SPCS.
The offending is alleged to have occurred at the old Tafaigata Prison.
She pleaded not guilty to the charge, therefore a hearing was conducted where prosecution called four witnesses including the suspended commissioner of SPCS Taitosaua Edward Winterstein, prisoner Violeti Stowers, Acting Manager for Custodies at the time, Douglas Fereti and Alisa Pitovao.
According to reports, a complaint was lodged from the Women’s Prison about there being not enough food and rations and the allegation was that tinned fish had been sold for ice cream.
According to Winterstein’s evidence during the trial, he was not aware of what type of elegi the accused is alleged to have stolen.
Acting Manager for Custodies, Mr. Fereti told the court that a written complaint had been received from Violeti Stowers about there being not enough food.
Fereti said during his evidence before the court that the complaint was serious because it had to do with rations.
“The complaint was that rations were being stocked and then sold,” the court was told.
Violeti Stowers’ when giving evidence said that on the 17th of October 2016, she had asked the Commissioner whether prison officers are able to buy or sell rations.
She said it was not a complaint but a question because she said five boxes of tin fish had been taken from their cupboard.
She explained that the tin fish rations are brought from the main office, where there were extra rations, these were kept in a cupboard in the Women’s Prison.
She also recalled that there was a day in October 2016 when tin fish was placed in five boxes and taken to Alisa Pitovao’s car who is a Prison Officer.
The court heard that she was told to take it to the car by the accused.
Stowers took the cases of tinned fish with two other females.
Ms. Pitovao left with the boxes of tinned fish and returned later with a 16 litre ice cream, tang and biscuits and were given to the prisoners.
Pitovao during her evidence said that on the 7th of October she recalled that there was a visit from a group in New Zealdn to the prison.
She said she was directed to take 5 boxes of tin fish that day and to get ice cream and drinks for female prisoners.
She said her and the accused went to Princessa Store at Vaitele and exchanged the boxes with ice cream, biscuits and packets of tang and it was given to the female prisoners for their sports day.
Justicle Leiataualesa in his ruling said that there is no dispute on the evidence before the court that the accused together with correction officer Alisa Pitovao took from Tafaigata prison five boxes of tin fish to a Princessa Store.
He added that there is no evidence presented before the court that the accused kept the goods or she personally benefitted from her actions.
He went on to say that he is not satisfied that the cases of tin fish sold by the accused to Princessa belonged to the Samoa Prison Correction Services.
“There was no inventory record showing that the boxes of tin fish sold by the accused belonged to the SPCS,” said Justice Leiataualesa.
“The prosecution case was devoid of any inventory records to prove the ownership of the tinned fish sold by the accused and indeed the Commissioner himself was not certain that such inventory records themselves were kept or existed, only that they should.”
Justice Leiataualesa added that there was also no other direct evidence from any other SPCS employee that the five cases of tinned fish taken by the accused and Alisa Pitovao to Princessa Store belonged to the SPCS.”
Justice Leiataualesa said, “it was fundamentally an employment issue that should not have been prosecuted through the criminal courts and an ordeal that she should not in my view have been put through in the circumstances of this case.”
“It was also in the end in any event not supported by the evidence of the reasons that I have set out.
“It is regrettable Hilda that you have had this prosecution hanging over your head for almost 3 years.
“On the evidence and for the foregoing reasons, I find the prosecution has failed to prove the charge beyond a reasonable doubt and it is accordingly dismissed.”
Speaking to the media outside of court Ms. Moleasi was grateful to the court’s decision.
She acknowledges the support of her family and her children as well as her friends.
Asked what next Ms. Moelasi said she had been financially struggling since SPCS terminated her service in 2016 due to the charges against her.
She added, she had sought the help of the Ombudsman however, they had to wait for the Court’s decision and now that the matter has been dismissed she will seek if SPCS could pay her the 3 years that she had been terminated by them.
“That will be the next step but for now I am just happy that my name is cleared and I still want to go back to my job because I have been there for 18 years so I still want to continue working there and serve the country.”