A Supreme Court judgment has revealed that a highly intelligent individual, described as such by the court, who is also a qualified musician, illegally imported hundreds of rounds of ammunition and attempted to mislead Customs officers by presenting an ammunition import licence belonging to one of the nobles of the realm.
Save Mataele, 46, was fined a total of TOP$2,500 for unlawfully importing hundreds of rounds of prohibited ammunition into the country and repeatedly lying to customs officials in an attempt to conceal the offence.
In a judgment delivered by Justice Paul Garlick KC on 11 November 2025, Mataele pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful importation of prohibited goods under the Customs and Excise Management Act.
He imported 400 rounds of .22 magnum ammunition and 150 rounds of Hornady Magnum rifle ammunition without a licence.
The court heard that Mataele travelled to a shipping premises to collect a crate he had imported from the United States. When questioned by a customs broker about whether the crate contained restricted goods, he falsely claimed it did not.
After a scan revealed the ammunition, he then lied again, claiming he had declared it and later produced “an import licence for ammunition, which had been granted to Lord Nuku in 2023,” according to the court document.
Justice Garlick said the offending was deliberate and premeditated, noting Mataele’s lack of remorse and his attempts to deceive authorities.
The judgment noted that Mataele’s claim that a conviction would hinder his ability to travel for work could not be accepted as a mitigating factor. The court said he was an “intelligent man” who would have understood the consequences of committing such an offence.
He also expressed concern about the growing prevalence of firearms-related offences in Tonga and suggested serious consideration may be needed regarding sentencing trends for such crimes in the future.
However, the judge acknowledged Mataele’s early guilty plea and the fact that he was a first-time offender.
He imposed a fine of T$2,000 on unlawful importation of prohibited 400.22 magnum ammunition and T$500 on unlawful importation of prohibited 150.22 Hornady Magnum rifle ammunition, to be paid within three months.
Failure to pay will result in six months’ imprisonment. The ammunition is liable for forfeiture under law.
