News
Former Civil Servant Receives Partially Suspended Sentence for Corruption related offences
Posted by Media Team 7 May 2026
A former civil servant has been sentenced by the Suva Magistrates Court for corruption-related offences.
Anaseini Kalougata was sentenced to 2 years imprisonment, with 12 months to be served immediately and the remaining 12 months suspended for a period of 3 years.
Ms Kalougata was charged by the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) and convicted after trial on one count of Falsification of Documents and one count of Obtaining Financial Advantage.
Sentencing was delivered today by Resident Magistrate Shageeth Somaratne.
The court found that between 1 November 2017 and 30 November 2017, Ms Kalougata was serving as the Head of the Department of Heritage in the then Ministry of Education, Heritage and Arts.
The court further found that Ms Kalougata was responsible for managing meal allowances and travel expenses for participants attending workshops held in Suva and Levuka.
Funds for these expenses were released to the account of the Director at the time and were subsequently allocated to Ms Kalougata for administration.
The Court found that Ms Kalougata submitted falsified claims for subsistence allowance and travel expenses and dishonestly obtained $1,750 from the Ministry
Resident Magistrate Somaratne said the offences committed by Ms Kalougata were serious and involved a gross breach of trust.
He further stated that Ms Kalougata was “not a morally blameless person” and that the offences were not merely technical breaches.
RM Somaratne further observed that the monies obtained were public funds and that her prior good character carried little weight as a mitigating factor.
The Resident Magistrate said the partially suspended sentence would serve the purposes of punishment and deterrence, while also allowing Ms Kalougata an opportunity for rehabilitation.
Ms Kalougata has 28 days within which to lodge an appeal.
Ms Kalougata was represented by Mr Joji Cakau of Vosarogo Lawyers.
The prosecution was conducted by FICAC State Counsel Sameea Nisa.
