Former Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama

The Suva High Court was informed today that the iPhone 12 Pro, supposedly used by former Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama, has been retrieved.

The state prosecution is currently seeking assistance from the Australian Federal Police to extract data from the phone, as their own extraction equipment’s license has expired and will take up to three weeks to renew.

They presented three witnesses today, including William Pawa, who worked as a Planning Coordinator at the Office of the Prime Minister under Bainimarama for eight years.

Pawa testified that upon the former PM’s departure in 2022, he was assigned to collect electronic gadgets from Bainimarama.

He stated that during his inspection, he noticed the serial number on the iPhone did not match the number recorded in the inventory.

He added that he then requested the former PM to give him the phone for official use.

He confirmed that Bainimarama handed over the phone; however, this arrangement was informal and without the knowledge of Pawa’s superiors or team.

Responding to questions from Assistant Director of Public Prosecution Laisani Tabuakoro, Pawa revealed that the phone is currently in police custody, having been taken last Thursday.

Tabuakoro told the court that efforts to locate Bainimarama’s phone included information from Vodafone, which indicated that the phone was with Pawa.

While Pawa believed the phone he requested from the former PM was new, the IMEI number from Vodafone’s data matched the phone in Pawa’s possession.

Meanwhile, Inspector Mikaele Coka and Amelia Kamsoo from the Fiji Police’s Communications Unit also testified regarding then-Acting Police Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu’s phone.

Kamsoo, who testified virtually, said Tudravu handed in his Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra upon resigning in December 2021; however, it was not working.

While responding to questions by Defense Lawyer Devanesh Sharma, she stated that the phone was sent to Foneology for repair because the screen was blank, but it was not fixable.

She added the phone was then disposed and no data was retrieved.

The case has been adjourned until next Monday.

In this matter, the former PM is charged with one count of making unwarranted demands as a public official, while Qiliho faces two counts of abuse of office.

It is alleged that between May and August 2021, Voreqe Bainimarama pressured then-Acting Police Commissioner Rusiate Tudravu to dismiss officers Penieli Ratei and Tomasi Naulu or resign.

Sitiveni Qiliho is accused of overriding Tudravu’s disciplinary decisions and unlawfully terminating both officers between August 5 and 18, 2021.

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