Tonga’s Supreme Court has handed down life sentences to two individuals convicted of attempting to smuggle a substantial quantity of methamphetamine into the country.
Mr Fine Tevita Fifita, 31, and Miss Vaivevea Mafi, 45, had been found guilty of importing 1,157.4 grams of the illicit drug concealed within a shipping container from the United States.
The prosecution’s case centred on a shipping crate transported by the MV Mount Cameron from the US to Tonga in April 2023. While originally consigned to another party, the court document shows that the receiver’s name had been suspiciously modified to designate Mafi as the recipient.
Authorities discovered the methamphetamine hidden inside laundry powder buckets, despite the cargo being declared as containing innocent items like clothes, shoes, and candy.
Under Tonga’s strict Illicit Drugs Control Act, anyone found in possession of 28 grams or more of an illicit drug faces mandatory life imprisonment.
Fifita was also convicted of two counts of bribing law enforcement officers.
Evidence revealed he had referred to the packages as “ice” and attempted to pay off officials when the drugs were discovered.
Mafi was found complicit in facilitating the shipment by changing the consignee details.
Overwhelming Evidence Presented
Justice Petunia Tupou delivered a scathing assessment of the defendants’ actions.
She noted that Fifita and Mafi admitted to being at Ma’ufanga on 27 April 2024 to clear the consignment.
Justice Tupou said the duo claimed it was intended to cover petrol and worker expenses for exporting agricultural produce to the United States, where Lolani Finau would market the goods.
The court was told that Lolani Finau was also known by the Facebook name “Lion Finau”.
The defendants further acknowledged that two packages discovered inside the laundry buckets within the consignment were tested and confirmed to contain 1,157.4 grams of methamphetamine.
Justice Tupou also found that the pair had no legal justification for facilitating the import of these prohibited substances into Tonga.
The Judge then dismissed the pair’s denial of “any knowledge of the packages”, pointing to a trail of incriminating evidence. This included suspicious Facebook communications, falsified import documents, and Fifita’s attempts to obstruct the investigation.
Justice Tupou emphasised that their coordinated efforts demonstrated clear knowledge of and participation in the drug operation.
The Judge said: “For those reasons, I am satisfied that the Prosecution has proven beyond any reasonable doubt so that I am sure that Fifita on 27 April, 2023 at Ma’ufanga, did knowingly, without lawful excuse imported 1157.4 grams of methamphetamine, a class A illicit drug.
As for Mafi, she was a willing party in all of this and knew that the crate contained illicit drugs. She agreed to be the consignee and I am not persuaded of the reason for using her name.”
Judge Tupou sentenced both Fifita and Mafi to life imprisonment for knowingly importing the methamphetamine – a Class A illicit drug – without lawful excuse.
