Labasa pair accused in minister identity scam front court

A Government minister was allegedly targeted in an identity theft case involving a couple from Labasa, as a trial continues with other individuals claiming they were also scammed.

Afrain Bi and Nishant Pravin Singh are jointly accused of 10 counts of unauthorised access to a computer system, eight counts of obtaining a financial advantage by deception, and one count of possession of property suspected to be proceeds of crime.

They appeared before Magistrate Safaira Ratu at the Labasa Magistrates Court yesterday.

They pleaded not guilty to the charges. It is alleged they illegally transferred money via bank accounts and M-PAiSA since 2023.

Both are also accused of identity theft involving Minister for Foreign Affairs and External Trade Sakiasi Ditoka. It is alleged they used Mr Ditoka’s image to create a fake social media profile for financial gain.

Police prosecutor Corporal Rajnesh Prasad said the matter was of serious concern because it betrayed public trust, with victims losing their hard-earned savings.

Corporal Prasad told the court that while other victims were present as State witnesses, Mr Ditoka was overseas and did not attend.

The investigating officer took the stand and presented several search warrants linked to multiple crime reports.

The warrants sought access to investigate the alleged transfer of funds from Bank of the South Pacific (BSP) accounts to those of the accused, as well as M-PAiSA transactions and call logs.

The alleged illegal transactions are not limited to Labasa but extend to other parts of the country, including Tavua.

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