DEPUTY Director of Public Prosecutions John Rabuku says existing laws regarding unexplained wealth and asset recovery in the fight against drug crime is being under utilised.
Speaking at the 27th Attorney General’s Conference at the Sheraton Fiji Golf Resort and Spa, he said provisions for unexplained wealth have been in Fijian law since 2012 and allows citizens to make a complaint about a misdemeanour, which could lead to court declarations.
Mr Rabuku raised the issue of a person’s source of wealth when their income doesn’t match their assets.
He also stressed the importance of these laws, which allow for conviction-based and non-conviction-based asset investigation.
“Under our laws, you’re able to make a complaint about a misdemeanor. And, the investigators are able to conduct an investigation, they go to the courts, and they ask for a declaration of a misdemeanor and we just haven’t had that for years.”
Mr Rabuku urged citizens to report unexplained wealth, noting the power of existing laws to dismantle crime syndicates.
”If you can’t explain a particular part of your wealth, then it’s deemed tainted, or it’s deemed a proceeds of crime.”
Mr Rabuku suggested that Fiji deal primarily with individuals rather than established drug networks.
“So you have the farmer in the village with a massive house, and two four-wheel drives. Nobody can touch them. No one can even touch the houses. It’s on our native land and we can’t even talk about how we can deal with that.
“Not only do you need to confiscate or forfeit the assets, then you have to manage that, through time, until you have the official orders, until they can be auctioned away.”
Adding to this discussion, acting Director of Public Prosecutions Nancy Tikoisuva said the problem lies in public reporting.
“Yes, people are talking about it, but who’s reporting? No one is reporting and so there’s a collective responsibility on members of the public to see that these things are happening, to report on these issues,” she said.
Ms Tikoisuva said the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), as the regulator, is responsible for overseeing banks’ compliance and the reporting of suspicious transactions.
”If you know your communities, particularly an unexplained wealth situation, where you know that there might be suspicion that their wealth is not consistent to what you might know as their legitimate income, is to come forward with it, and take it up with police.”
Commissioner of Police Rusiate Tudravu expressed full support for strengthening this area, confirming that investigators are working on it.
“This is where we are heading into and this is one of the challenges that we are facing and our investigators are working on that,” he said.
Mr Tudravu highlighted the need to strengthen specialised police units.
“Our assets recovery unit and also the forensic science and our money laundering unit — these are all the units that we need to strengthen given the nature of the offences we are facing now.”
