AN application by businessman Imran Khan seeking to halt his sentencing last week and reopen his defence case following his conviction for possessing methamphetamine was dismissed by the High Court in Suva.
In a ruling delivered on June 30 — the day Khan was sentenced to four years imprisonment — Justice Daniel Goundar ruled that the high court had no jurisdiction to intervene in the manner sought by Khan, who was convicted in the Suva Magistrates’ Court on June 17 of one count of unlawful possession of illicit drugs.
Khan had applied to the high court under Section 239 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2009, seeking a stay of all further proceedings, including sentencing, and requesting that the court direct the magistrates’ court to reopen his case and allow additional evidence to be adduced.
The June 30 ruling stated that after the magistrate had delivered judgment, Khan and his partner obtained new material which they claimed showed that vehicle registration number IV 991 was registered to another person. Khan argued that the evidence was relevant to findings made by the trial court and that, without the high court’s intervention, he would be sentenced without an opportunity to present the new material.
However, Justice Goundar ruled that section 239 provides for a “motion in arrest of judgment” only in limited circumstances where the information does not disclose an offence known to law, and applies only to judgments of the high court, not those of the magistrate’s court.
The judge further held that the high court’s supervisory jurisdiction could not be used to reshape ongoing criminal proceedings in the magistrate’s court or direct that additional evidence be heard.
Justice Goundar said concerns about the sufficiency of evidence, the conduct of the defence case or the weight attached to documents were matters to be addressed through the appeals process after a final order had been made.
Accordingly, the high court dismissed Khan’s application for want of jurisdiction.
