The Nadi Magistrates Court has issued a suspended sentence for Justin Ho. Last month, Ho admitted to an amended charge of submitting false or misleading documents. According to the facts presented, he provided two Tax Identification Numbers (TIN) belonging to other individuals to a Senior Customs Officer to secure the release of a consignment, knowing the documents were false.
The court initially sentenced Ho to 18 months in prison. However, taking into account mitigating factors, including his guilty plea, the sentence was reduced to nine months, which has been fully suspended for three years. The court opted for this suspended sentence by considering that Ho is a first-time offender and that no loss was incurred by the government, deeming that a custodial sentence was unnecessary as a deterrent measure.