4 police officers charged with attempted murder

By SCHOLAR KASSAS
FOUR policemen were charged in the Waigani committal court yesterday with attempted murder on a Senior Constable’s son.
Magistrate Paul Puri Nii read out the charges to Emmanuel Somon, 30, Philimon Parom, 28, Ade Kawa, 29, and Frank Apa, 30, and fixed May 10 for the hearing.
Nii said there were two sets of information before the court – one has information with Somon, Parom and Kawa’s names and the other has Apa’s name.
He administered the two sets of information respectively on the defendants.
He arraigned them differently because Apa was arrested and charged later on a separate information sheet.
The four policemen are charged with attempted murder and deprivation of liberty of Benjamin Naraboi’s son, Samuel Naraboi, 21.
Nii said the substantive matter would return on the adjourned date and converted the four accused’s police bail of K1,000 each to court bail.
Police alleged that on Feb 27, between 6.30am and 7am, four policemen were seen at the roundabout between the Games Village Police Barracks, Tokarara and Waigani Driveway.
Samuel and William Michael were walking down toward Waigani Bus stop after spending a night with a friend at Tokarara.
At the junction at the Games Village Police Barracks, they saw a man by the road selling betel nut.
Samuel approached the betel nut seller and asked him if he could spare him a betel nut.
The betel nut seller then responded by swearing at Samuel and Michael.
At the instant, an off duty policeman identified as being attached to police headquarters drove up and spoke with the betel nut seller.
It was alleged that the public assisted the unidentified policeman catch Samuel and assaulted him.
Samuel and Michael were admitted to the hospital for injuries caused by the alleged beatings.
Samuel fell at the edge of the traffic island roundabout and while he was lying on the ground, the officer started kicking him with his boot.
Upon seeing this, Michael ran towards Samuel and tried to stop the policeman but the unidentified policeman grabbed Michael’s jaw and broke it.
Michael stood up and ran into the police barracks seeking refuge.
Then a Fox 101 Police Unit arrived at the scene and Somon allegedly lifted Samuel in the air and tackled him head down first on the road.
It was alleged the four policemen used a fan belt to hook Samuel’s neck, dragged him on the road, lifted and dumped him into the police vehicle and started torturing him for three to four hours.
The parents and the relative started searching for Samuel by enquiring for his whereabouts at the Waigani polices station and learnt that he was detained by the Fox101 police unit at Downtown police station.
Samuel’s mother proceeded to police station and upon her arrival at the station, she saw her son was brought back from Ela Beach after being allegedly forced by the Fox 101 police unit members to wash him at the sea because his body turned pale, but instead they drove him to the St John Ambulance Bay at 3-Mile and wanted to dump Samuel there.
Samuel’s father then went to the St John Bay where he caught up with the four policemen and demanded that his son be taken to the Port Moresby General Hospital.
At about 11.30am, Samuel was brought to emergency ward and the doctor confirmed that Samuel had a severe injury with thick blood clot forming in his brain.
It was established that he also had burnt marks all over his body, indicating he was tortured.
He was then rushed into the operating theatre for head surgery.