Samoa's Prime Minister made a plea for leniency for a man who avoided a rape charge for eight years after fleeing New Zealand for Samoa while on bail.Fatu Seti, co-owner of a resort in Apia, was sentenced by Judge Grant Fraser in the Auckland District Court yesterday to four years 7 months in prison. He had been found guilty by jury trial of the rape of a 19-year-old woman on Waiheke Island.Seti was arrested and charged with the 2005 rape but fled to Samoa while on bail by dressing as a fa'afafine and taking out a passport in a different name. He lived in Samoa for the next eight years, where character references presented in court said he led an exemplary life promoting the country through his work as a fire dancer and as co-owner of a resort.Seti was extradited last year.Letters from Samoa's Prime Minister, the Speaker of the House and police chief described Seti as a \great asset to Samoa\, and said his absence had already been heavily felt.The PM's letter asked the judge to be lenient: \I pray for a more lenient sentence that may allow him to return to Samoa as has been the practice by the courts in the past.\But Judge Fraser said during sentencing that Seti fleeing to Samoa was an aggravating factor.\Trial was delayed by many years with the need for extradition and the delay has been highly impactive on the complainant.\He said rape was always a serious, violent offence. \The psychological impact of this offending will stay with the victim probably for the rest of her life.\The judge said the complainant had accepted a ride home about 2am after a night out in September 2005, and ended up sleeping in Seti's bed. About 7am she woke to find Seti having sex with her.She told him \No\ and to get off her. \You then got off her without a word and went and lay on a nearby couch