Expatriate acquitted of fraud

By BEVERLY PETER
FORMER Comrade Trustee Services Ltd (CTSL) statutory manager Sitiveni Weleilakeba has been acquitted of a charge of misappropriation.
Judge Teresa Berrigan in the National Court yesterday handed down her decision on verdict saying she found that Weleilakeba’s act of directing the CTSL to pay his tax of more than K665,000 was not dishonest or with intention to defraud.
“The State has failed to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that it was dishonest according to the standard of ordinary reasonable people for Weleilakeba to direct the payment of outstanding tax which he understood was owing by CTSL to the tax officer, or that Weleilakeba believed that he was acting dishonestly in doing so,” Berrigan said.
Weleilakeba of Fiji had been charged based on the allegation that he was engaged by Bank of PNG (BPNG) as a statutory manager for CTSL pursuant to a term of engagement date, July 31, 2019.
He was to be paid A$30,000 (about K70,000) monthly without any deduction.
It was alleged that in August 2021, Weleilakeba instructed CTLS finance manager to create a document purporting to be a CTSL pay slip dated Aug 16, 2021 which showed that CTSL paid a portion of his monthly fees to the PNG Internal Revenue Commission (IRC) as personal income tax rate of 42 per cent.
The information was false because CTSL had never paid Weleilakeba personal income rate to IRC.
On Dec 1, 2021, Weleilakeba authorised a payment of K665,482.45 belonging to CTSL to IRC as payment for his personal income tax for the month of January to December 2021.
Judge Berrigan said it was clear from the evidence that Weleilakeba was engaged by BPNG to manage the fund.
“All of his costs were to be met by CTSL and it follows that his tax was to be paid by CTSL upon approval of his invoices,” she said.
She added that she found the accused (Weleilakeba) was entitled to a monthly fee after tax of A$30,000.
“It is a large figure but as Mr Bakani explained, it was necessary to attract Weleilakeba to the position which required particular expertise to manage a very large superannuation funds, and was intended to be relatively short term.
“I further find that tax on Weleilakeba’s fee was to be paid by CTSL,” she said. Judge Berrigan said in all the circumstance, the State failed to establish beyond a reasonable doubt that Weleilakeba acted dishonestly by directing the payment of his outstanding tax by CTSL.
“Weleilakeba understood that the tax was to be paid by CTSL and that he had the power within the organisation to direct it to be done. It was not done for any improper purpose, gain or advantage.
“As far as he was concerned, it should already have been paid by CTSL,” she said.
Judge Berrigan said the conduct was not dishonest and nor was it done with intention to defraud.