THE legal assessment of investigation files involving 11 senior police officers accused of alleged corruption is expected to take months, with the ODPP estimating the process could stretch beyond seven months.
Acting ODPP Director Nancy Tikoisuva said the files, which were submitted yesterday by police after the completion of their investigation, were now undergoing review.
The case began in December last year after screenshots of alleged Viber exchanges were circulated on social media, implicating senior officers in discussions involving drug activity and possible payments to police.
The leaked chats allegedly showed the officers communicating with drug traffickers about drug shipments and payoffs,
Ms Tikoisuva said the ODPP would assess the evidence gathered by police before deciding whether any further action was required.
“So its 11 files and it would take some time to assess them all,” she said.
“But it depends on the files because some files are bigger and some not so big.
“We received it in big boxes. So it will all depend on the type of analysis and research also.”
Ms Tikoisuva said the ODPP generally took up to 21 days to review a file relating to one officer.
On that basis, the review of all eleven files could take at least 230 days, depending on the size and complexity of each file.
Ms Tikoisuva said if prosecutors found gaps in the evidence, police would be asked to carry out additional investigations.
The process was explained to journalists during an ODPP workshop yesterday, where Ms Tikoisuva outlined the normal procedure followed when police files are submitted for legal assessment. The investigation was conducted with assistance from the Australian Federal Police and New Zealand Police.
Police said digital forensics officers and forensic accountants based at the Criminal Investigations Department, with assistance from the Fiji Financial Intelligence Unit, examined the financial history of the officers allegedly involved.
The investigation was based on claims that officers had received money from individuals involved in the illicit drug trade.
“The investigation team was made of senior investigators, some of whom were called back from retirement, to specifically handle investigations against members of the organisation,” police said.
“The team was given full autonomy in the conduct of investigation.”
Police would await the ODPP’s independent legal advice before making further comment.
