RE-TRIAL on the case of a teacher accused of stealing $1.3 million from the Solomon Islands Government (SIG) between 2017 and 2018 has commenced in the Honiara Magistrate Court.
Cecilia Tome faces one count of Simple Larceny.
The prosecution plans to call eight witnesses during the trial.
This is a second trial after the case was remitted to the Honiara Magistrate Court early last year following a successful appeal by the prosecution against Tome’s 2021 acquittal.
A High Court judge ordered the matter for re-trial before a different magistrate.
After the initial trial 2021, Principal Magistrate Tearo Beneteti acquitted Tome after a “no case to answer” submission from her lawyer.
The trial, based solely on tendered documents without calling witnesses, was for a charge of Embezzlement which has since been substituted with Simple Larceny.
The offence allegedly occurred in December 2017, when two large payments totalling over $3million were mistakenly paid into Tome’s ANZ bank.
The error was made by a Payroll staff in the Ministry of Finance and Treasury (MoFT).
The prosecution claimed Tome failed to report the overpayments to either the Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development (MEHRD) or the MoFT Payroll Section.
It was alleged that between December 2017 and July 2018, Tome withdrew $1.3 million and transferred the money from her ANZ account to her secondary ANZ account and those of others.
The error was eventually discovered in July 2018 by the MoFT Payroll Section.
As a result, the amount of over $2.4 million was returned to the Solomon Islands Government, but the remaining $1.3 million was unaccounted for.
Police later charge Tome for allegedly using that amount for her personal benefit.
Tome was arrested by Janus, a joint taskforce between the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) and MoFT.
The trial, before Principal Magistrate Emily Zazariko Vagibule Pakoa continues.
Tome is represented by Ben Alasia of the Public Solicitor’s Office, while Public Prosecutor Sabrina Habu appears for the Crown.
By ASSUMPTA BUCHANAN
Solomon Star, Honiara
