Fiji’s Director of Public Prosecutions Christopher Pryde says they will appeal the sentence handed down by the High Court in Suva to a 73-year-old man convicted of raping a seven-year-old boy at a church last October.
The High Court had sentenced the man to six years imprisonment with a non-parole period of five years imprisonment on Friday, August 14, 2020.
The man was convicted of the crimes he committed on a day October 1-31, 2019, at a village in the Eastern Division.
The High Court heard the widower sexually offended the primary school student at a church, where the young boy, his mother, and two siblings had visited for a service.
“After the sermon, the victim was running around inside the church with his other two siblings, the victim’s sibling went outside and the accused was left alone with the victim,” the High Court heard, adding the incident happened when they were alone.
Mr Pryde noted a case law in State v Gordon Aitcheson in 2018, the Supreme Court raised the sentencing tariff for child rape to between 11 and 20 years imprisonment.
He said the Supreme Court made no distinction between the types of rapes “as the High Court has done in this case”.
“Rape is rape,” the DPP said in response to the sentencing via a statement issued today.
“We are of the view that a sentence based on the type of rape committed is misconceived and that the resulting sentence is manifestly lenient.
“The case will, therefore, be appealed.”
