Maharaj ordered to pay $1000 over bail breach

A woman who admitted breaching her bail conditions by failing to report to a police station while awaiting trial in a drug-related case has been fined $1000 by the Suva Magistrate Court.

Zoe Maharaj appeared before Resident Magistrate Shageeth Somaratne yesterday. She admitted to breaching bail conditions imposed on her in 2019.

The court heard that Maharaj failed to report to Raiwaqa Police Station on four occasions between September 2019 and January 2020, despite being required to do so under the conditions of her bail.

In sentencing, Magistrate Somaratne said Maharaj’s guilty plea spared the court the time and cost of a contested hearing, although it was entered at a relatively late stage. He also noted that the matter had been before the court for almost six years.

The magistrate said the offence carries a maximum penalty of a $2000 fine, 12 months imprisonment, or both. However, after considering the lengthy delay in the case and Maharaj’s financial circumstances, he ruled that a fine was the most appropriate sentence.

As the four breaches arose from the same course of conduct, the court imposed a single aggregate fine of $1000 under the Sentencing and Penalties Act.

Maharaj has been given one month, starting today, to pay the fine.

If she fails to pay within that time, she will serve 100 days in prison.

She has 28 days to appeal the sentence.