A decision to permanently stay sex charges against former Solomon Islands attorney-general Julian Moti went too far and denied the Australian public the right to seek justice, the Queensland Court of Appeal heard this morning.
Queensland Supreme Court Justice Debra Mullins ruled last year that payments to the alleged victim were so excessive Mr Moti could not be tried on charges of rape and sexual abuse.
The charges against Moti related to the alleged rape of a 13-year-old girl in Noumea and Vanuatu in 1997.
Moti, an Australian citizen, was deported in December 2007 and arrested at Brisbane International Airport and charged with seven counts of engaging in sexual intercourse with a person under the age of 16.
The Australian Federal Police paid about $150,000 to the complainant and other members of her Vanuatu-based family
The AFP said the family had threatened not to give evidence against Mr Moti if their living expenses in Vanuatu were not covered.
In her judgement, Justice Mullins said the amount paid was an abuse of the justice process and would lead to an expectation that other Pacific complainants of sexual abuse by Australians also would be paid.
Although she rejected Moti's lawyers' claim that the charges were politically motivated, she criticised the AFP's handling of the investigation.
In appealing the case, the Crown argued Justice Mullins did not find the payments were illegal or that they had undermined confidence in the courts.
She also did not rule that money had tainted prosecution witnesses' evidence, the Crown said.
The Crown argued payments were not so excessive as to grant Mr Moti immunity from prosecution.
Instead, the court should have imposed a temporary stay until payments had stopped, or allowed a decision on the admissibility of Crown evidence to be determined during the course of the trial.
The appeal continues.
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