PROSECUTION v. LA BRIGITTE

PROSECUTION v. LA BRIGITTE

The court held that impersonation by writing and signing as General Manager when not entitled constitutes forgery under article 609. The lower court's reliance on article 609 was correct, and there was no contradiction in its analysis. Mitigating circumstances applied, reducing the sentence to one year, suspended, as the accused was a first offender and had some authority to represent the company.

Citation
RPA1043/12/HC/KIG
Parties
Appellant: Prosecution; Respondent/accused: La Brigitte Serianz Rakic; Civil Party: Cooperative La Reine; Civil Party/appellant (struck Off): Kamodoka Ndoli Samuel
Court
High Court
Jurisdiction
Rwanda
Judgment Date
21 March 2014
Case Number
RPA1043/12/HC/KIG
Procedural Posture
Criminal Appeal / High Court Appellate Judgment
Outcome
Conviction; sentence imposed and suspended; appeal allowed in part; previous acquittal reversed.
Legal Topics
Forgery, Impersonation, Forged Documents, Burden of Proof, Mitigating Circumstances
Source Language
en, rw
Criminal Law Forgery Impersonation Forged Documents Burden of Proof Mitigating Circumstances

Case Brief

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Parties

Prosecution

Appellant

La Brigitte Serianz Rakic

Respondent/accused

Cooperative La Reine

Civil Party

Kamodoka Ndoli Samuel

Civil Party/appellant (struck Off)

Procedural Posture

Criminal Appeal / High Court Appellate Judgment

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the Intermediate Court applied the correct law in acquitting the accused of forgery by impersonation
  2. 2 Whether the judgment was sufficiently motivated
  3. 3 Whether there was contradiction between the analysis and the decision

Ratio Decidendi

The court held that impersonation by writing and signing as General Manager when not entitled constitutes forgery under article 609. The lower court's reliance on article 609 was correct, and there was no contradiction in its analysis. Mitigating circumstances applied, reducing the sentence to one year, suspended, as the accused was a first offender and had some authority to represent the company.

Court Disposition

Conviction; sentence imposed and suspended; appeal allowed in part; previous acquittal reversed.

Orders

  • The appeal of the prosecution is allowed in part.
  • La Brigitte Serianz Rakic is convicted of the offence of forged document by impersonation.