20yrs for trafficking, rape

By ZEDAIAH KANAU
A RARE conviction if not the first for human trafficking in the country, a businessman, is believed to be in hiding in Chimbu after being jailed in his absence for 20 years with hard labour on Thursday at the Bomana National Court.
He was also jailed 20 years for rape in the same case but the judge decided he serve the sentences concurrently.
Justice Panuel Mogish after sentencing, issued a bench warrant for Willie Gare, 47, of Korokoa village, Gumine in Chimbu, which is to be served to the Office of the Police Commissioner and the police hierarchy at Chimbu for Gare’s immediate arrest.
The bench warrant will be returnable to the Bomana National Court on Feb 8, 2021, at 10am.
Gare will serve his sentence from the date of execution of the bench warrant (date captured).
His guarantors have been ordered to pay up their sureties.
There was only one mitigating factor, Gare being a first-time offender, but 16 aggravating factors against Gare.
Justice Mogish, however, imposed a sentence of 20 years for the trafficking charges and 20 years for the rape charge, with both to be served concurrently.
“I order this sentence (rape) be served concurrently with the sentences for trafficking in person as these offences were committed in the course of a single transaction,” Justice Mogish said.
Gare was convicted on Nov 21 on six counts of trafficking persons committed against six young women from Central and one count of rape, which included raping one of them.
He was out on bail then and after conviction, State lawyer Solomon Kuku applied for Gare to be incarcerated at Bomana afterwards but Justice Mogish used his discretion and extended bail on the condition that he return to court on Dec 4 for submissions on sentence.
Gare has not been in court since and attempts by his lawyer to get in contact with him failed after it is believed that he changed his phone numbers and went into hiding in his village in Chimbu.
Gare is the owner of the Waghi Hideaway Lodge located along Gumine Road outside Kundiawa town.
In 2015, Gare wanted some girls from Central to perform dances at the opening of his lodge so he contacted his cousin Anna Tiene, who is married to a man from Boera village in Central.
Some young girls were organised and began practising leading up to July 29, 2015, when Gare and two policemen came to take them to Chimbu.
They met with one of the parents of the girls at Boera where an agreement was reached for the girls to stay for two weeks to perform dances and return.
Gare gave the parent K500 and she agreed to release the girls into his custody.
Two males and five females were picked up by Gare. Two females joined later.
They arrived in Kundiawa the next day and stopped at Gare’s house where a welcome reception was hosted by Gare’s wife and family.
They were accommodated in four separate rooms at the lodge for two weeks until Aug 14, 2015.
After the opening, they were all confined to a single room.
One of the girls eloped with a policeman a day after the lodge opening.
Gare did not pay for the girls’ return airfares to Port Moresby.
Gare sexually exploited the girls were by using them to entertain patrons of the lodge, directing them to sit, drink alcohol and have sex with them. Gare also assaulted them and raped one of the girls.
They were rescued by police and officers from the International Organisation for Migration on Aug 29, 2015, after some of the girls and boys escaped to the Kerowagi Police Barracks and contacted their parents.