Former journalist Charlie Charters faced a court hearing yesterday following his arrest at Nadi Airport on Saturday. Charters, represented by his lawyer Seforan Fatiaki, is charged with two counts of aiding and abetting under Section 45 of the Crimes Act and Section 13(1)(g) of the FICAC Act 2007.
The Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) alleges that from November 2 to December 14, 2025, and in February this year, Charters intentionally assisted an unidentified officer of the commission in publishing official information on his Facebook page without authorization from the FICAC Commissioner. During the court proceedings, Fatiaki emphasized that no specific FICAC officer has been named in the charges, raising questions about the validity of the prosecution.
There was a brief delay in court proceedings as FICAC lawyers realized that Mr. Charters had not yet been brought into the courtroom. He was subsequently located and presented to the judge, Magistrate Shageeth Somaratne.
Charters was granted bail, albeit with the condition of surrendering his passport, which Fatiaki contested, arguing that Charters, a Hong Kong resident, needed to travel to Sydney, Australia, for work-related commitments. Despite this disagreement, the magistrate made a ruling on the passport, stating he would be willing to hear an application to alter the bail terms if presented by Charters.
The prosecution struggled to provide details regarding any prior convictions for Charters, leading to concerns over the bail conditions. Given the prosecution’s lack of objection to bail, the court stipulated that Charters must not commit further offenses or interfere with potential witnesses.
Looking ahead, Fatiaki indicated plans to file a motion at the High Court in Suva, aimed at contesting the legitimacy of Lavi Rokoika’s position as Acting FICAC Commissioner. The case has been postponed until March 2. This matter highlights ongoing discussions about the transparency and accountability within Fiji’s anti-corruption framework.
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