September 8, 2006

In court this week

The Court presided over by Magistrate Laura Pillay this week acquitted Superintendent James Savy of Stealing. Mr. Savy was charged with stealing 500 Euros being the property of Alwyn Percy Talma.

The Prosecution called 4 witnesses to prove the charge. The Prosecution alleged that in 2003 PW1 along with a friend picked up a wallet at La Batie. In the wallet there were some cards, including the driving licence of Mr. Talma, an ID, bank cards, and a 500 Euro note. The wallet was taken to Beau Vallon Police Station where it was handed over to Mr. Savy who was at the Inquiry Desk. Mr. Savy opened the wallet and then handed it over to another police woman to make an entry of its content and record the name of PW2.

On the 2nd September 2003, Mr. Talma went to the Beau Vallon Police Station to collect his wallet and he was given everything except the 500 Euro note. Although Mr. Savy admitted that he was given the wallet, he denied that there was a 500 Euro note in the wallet when he received it. Since nobody actually saw Mr. Savy taking the 500 Euro note from the purse, the evidence adduced by the Prosecution was merely circumstantial.

It appears from the evidence that the Prosecution adduced evidence to show that Mr. Savy did not follow standard procedure when he received the wallet and opened it himself instead of asking the person who handed it over to him to open it himself and reveal its content to him. The Police Woman testified as much. The Magistrate remarked that since the charge was one of stealing she would not address her mind to the issue of whether or not the procedure had been followed. She said the issue was “irrelevant” as far as the Court was concerned. The Court further stated: “If the accused did indeed not follow set procedure then this is a matter for disciplinary action by his employers and not the court. It does not necessarily follow that because he failed to follow set procedures the accused person is guilty of the offence of stealing.”

The Court also went on to question the credibility of PW2 and the veracity of his evidence. The Court observed that initially PW2 had told the Court that the note was a 500 UK pound note then changed his story and stated that it was a 500 Euro note. Apparently PW2 is illiterate but he was able to testify that in the wallet there was a driving licence, and ID as well as “bank cards: maybe Nouvobanq and American Express”. The Magistrates was baffled that a person who admitted that he is not able to read and write “…will know the difference between numerous bank cards that are not issued in this Country”.

The Court therefore did not believe the evidence of the Prosecution star witness and went on to acquit the accused. “The only evidence on record that the purse when it was brought to Beau Vallon Police Station and handed over to the accused contained a 500 Euro note comes from PW2. However, I find him not to be truthful and therefore disregard his evidence.” On the other hand, the Court accepted the evidence of Mr. Savy as truthful and “credible.”  Mr. Savy was being represented by Cambridge-educated Barrister and Member of the National Assembly, Mr. Bernard Georges.

Copyright 2006: Seychelles Weekly, Victoria, Mahe, Seychelles