Court rejects request to withdraw expatriate’s case

A court yesterday refused a request to withdraw a case against an expatriate in order to verify his residential status with the Immigration Department before proceeding with the case.
Waigani Committal Court magistrate Cosmas Bidar told the court that they would have to confirm the charge against the Bangladeshi national before making a decision.
Rasel Kamal, 30, from Narayangonj district, Bangladesh, was charged with  illegally living in the country, without a work permit.
“The request to have the case withdrawn was because there was a peace agreement between the complainant (a national) and the accused,” Bidar said.
“But this is not something between the parties. We have someone from outside of the country and whether he is legally living here or not we have to find out from the Immigration Department.
The court heard that the accused had breached the conditions of his work permit and also breached the Immigration act in relation to his entry into the country. According to police, it was alleged that the accused was employed on a three-year work permit with a mechanical services company as a manager.