Diane Charlie-Puna was sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment in March this year. Photo: Cook Islands News / Supplied
A leader of one of Cook Islands opposition parties says situations like the prisoner who had breakfast at a popular restaurant in Rarotonga has happened before and is calling for the minister of corrections to step down.
Former secretary of Infrastructure Cook Islands, Diane Charlie-Puna, who committed fraud, is less than six months into an 18-month prison sentence and had breakfast at a popular eatery in the capital Avarua last Friday.
Charlie-Puna has since been found to have breached her work release programme, which has now been cancelled.
United Party leader Teariki Heather said the minister and director are responsible.
"I think it's the system. It's the minister and also the directors whoever they are. They're responsible for a high-profile case like this one and for her to be seen unsupervised, that was disappointing," Heather said.
"This is not a one off. This has been happening and this is an indication of the system breaking down."
Heather said corrective services minister George (Maggie) Angene acts as a "chauffeur" for prisoners, claiming it was mostly for people in his constituency.
However, when asked for an example Heather said, "he hadn't seen it".
"I've heard many people seeing the minister, George Maggie, acting as chauffeur for these people," he said.
"It's like a joke but the powers and the things he holds is absolutely disappointing."
In response to questions from RNZ Pacific, Angene said, "[Heather] doesn't know anything about the prison" and what he said, "is all wrong".
Angene said Charlie-Puna "was not allowed to go places like (the café)" and the responsibility of the inmate was on the person who hired Charlie-Puna for the work scheme.
He said normally inmates are checked on by corrective services intermittently.
When RNZ Pacific asked Angene if Charlie-Puna was given preferential treatment, he said, "he didn't know about that" and questions needed to be directed to Arorangi Prison Superintendent Teariki Puru and Corrective Services secretary Teokotai Joseph.
Puru and Joseph rejected RNZ Pacific's interview requests.
However, speaking to Cook Islands News, Joseph said Charlie-Puna was released onto the prison work scheme programme in May 2024 with strict conditions after serving three months' imprisonment and in accordance with the prison policy.
He confirmed with the newspaper that Charlie-Puna was not supervised by a prison officer because she was hired out by a hirer, and the hirer was responsible for supervising the inmate.
Joseph did not provide the hirer's name.
'Was this an exception to the rule?'
Opposition leader Tina Browne said "you can't help but think" Charlie-Puna was given preferential treatment.
Browne had hired inmates before on work schemes before and said they had always been supervised by a corrections officer.
"They might argue that the inmates that came to do work for us are maybe the high-risk ones, but it is the norm as far as I'm aware to have officers supervise all inmates that go out on work programs.
"The question must therefore be was this an exception to the rule and if so why?"
She also wanted to know why Joseph would not disclose the hirer's name.
"You're in a public office and the matter should be transparent so by not disclosing the name that creates a lot of creative thinking."
Unlike Heather, Browne said she had never heard of anything like this happening before.
Browne said she did not think the hirer would have been told by corrective services Charlie-Puna was not allowed to go to a café.
"I think she should have known better herself, but the ministry was responsible for putting it out there on whatever terms and conditions, and there should be some consequence within the ministry for that sort of behaviour."
Angene said the hirer agrees that the inmate will work from 7am to 4pm and then is to go back to prison, is not to associate with any former inmate or touch alcohol.
RNZ Pacific has requested a copy of the agreement from the Ministry of Corrective Services but have not received a response.
Charlie-Puna was sentenced alongside her husband Ngatokorua Puna, the former director of National Environment Service (NES), who was sentenced to five years in prison.
They were both sentenced with former Cook Islands deputy prime minister Robert Tapaitau who is serving two years and nine months imprisonment.
The trio were convicted of taking NZD$70,000 in public funds between April 2019 and March 2021.
Charlie-Puna was convicted for six offences that involved five cheque draws between 8 July 2019 and 7 April 2020, and conspiracy to defraud between 9 September and 11 October 2020.
The sum of public money involved was NZD$11,489.