Obscene texting costly

 A WOMAN who sent obscene text messages to another has been fined K500 and warned by the court that it was  a serious offence punishable by a K20,000 fine or jail term.

Lae magistrate Sasa Inkung also fined Wendy Tsirum, from the Autonomous Region of Bougainville,  K100 – to be paid as compensation to the complainant Nancy Sinclair – for the obscenities she had received.

Inkung told the court that under the new communications legislation, people who sent obscene messages to others or swore on the phone could face a fine of up to K20,000 or go to jail.

“You don’t have this money so I will fine you K500,” he told Tsirum and warned her not to repeat it.

The court heard that on May 29, around 8pm, Tsirum, who resides at Seventh Street in Lae, texted a number of obscene messages to Sinclair.  

She suspected Sinclair of having an affair with her husband.

One of the text messages read by the prosecutor said: “Yu pamuk, noken ring ken lo dispel fone (You whore, don’t call this phone again).” 

Tsirum admitted that she sent the text to Sinclair because she saw her number on the phone which her husband had been using.

“If you suspect them of having an affair you should take them to court. Follow the right process,” Inkung told the woman.

“Sending offensive text messages to the complainant is wrong.”