Two Tongan men charged over 11 cannabis plants grown at their homes
Tonga Police separately charged a 35-year-old man in Lavengatonga and a 23-year-old man in Vaini with cultivating and possessing cannabis plants grown at their homes, seizing 11 plants in all. Both were held in custody pending bail and were due at the Nuku'alofa Magistrate's Court in August 2010.
Tonga Police separately charged two men with cultivating and possessing cannabis
plants found at their homes in Lavengatonga and Vaini, on Tongatapu.[1]Deputy
Police Commander Taniela Faletau reported on 21 July 2010 that a 35-year-old man
had been charged with cultivating and possessing seven cannabis plants at his
home.[2]
Three days later, a 23-year-old man was charged with the same offences after
four cannabis plants were found at his home in Vaini.[2]The plants found at
the two homes ranged in height from 4 to 10 or 11 inches.[2]Both men were
kept in police custody pending bail and were to appear at the Nuku’alofa
Magistrate’s Court in August.[2]
Case data
Every number and detail the sources state, with the sources that state it.
The article names no exact date for either arrest; 21 July 2010 is the date of Deputy Police Commander Taniela Faletau's statement about the first charge, and the second charge followed three days later.
The plants found at the Lavengatonga home are given as 4 to 11 inches high and those at Vaini as 4 to 10 inches; the article gives no weight of cannabis seized.
The article does not say who searched the homes or whether the plants were uprooted, so 11 is recorded as the number of plants the two charges cover.
No court outcome, plea or sentence from the August 2010 appearance was found, and the article does not say whether the two cases were linked.
Only the age and home village of each man were published; the article gives no other identifiers.
The public article page shows only its lead sentence behind a subscription notice; the remaining detail comes from Matangi Tonga's own print view of the same article.
No independent second outlet's account of these charges and no photograph of the event was found.
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Arrested 2Charged 2Plants destroyed 3Cannabis 2.3 kg
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