Court to hear application to disqualify Sheppard from case

By KARO JESSE
THE National Court has ruled that lawyer Greg Sheppard of Young and Williams law firm has the right to be heard in an application in which he is the key witness.
The application was filed by lawyer McRonald Nale, of Jema Lawyers representing Prime Minister James Marape, an intervener in a special reference filed by Opposition Leader Belden Namah questioning the audited report on the Coronavirus (Covid-19) funds.
Justice Alan David yesterday ruled on a preliminary issue raised by Nale regarding whether Sheppard should be heard in an application seeking to restrain him from acting for Namah in the special reference on the grounds that it amounted to a conflict of interest on Sheppard’s part.
Justice David allowed Sheppard to be heard and then adjourned the matter to next Wednesday, for hearing of Nale’s application to disqualify Young and Williams and Sheppard from representing Namah in the special reference.
In reference to the copy of the application to disqualify Sheppard obtained by The National, the application also seeks orders to have Sheppard referred to the lawyers statutory committee (PNG Law Society) to be investigated.
Nale said Sheppard had been arrested and charged for various offences by the special police forensic criminal investigations team (SPFCIT).
It is understood that SPFCIT conducted an investigation into the alleged misappropriation and theft of K268 million by management, directors and lawyers of a purported entity, the Ok Tedi Fly River Development Foundation Ltd, in which Sheppard was associated and had received a substantial amount of that money which belonged to the people of Western.
The application read that on Jan 21, Sheppard was arrested and charged by the SPFCIT on two counts of conspiracy and two counts of false pretence in relation to allegations of misusing monies belonging to the Western people’s dividend trust account, also known as the community mine continuation agreement (CMCA)trust fund.
Sheppard was again arrested and charged on June 8 and Aug 9 for two counts of misappropriation, money laundering and a count for perverting the course of justice and forgery for illegally adducing from Bank South Pacific evidence that led to the foundation of the proceeding.
The reference filed by Namah which Sheppard was in carriage of before the court revolves around the SPFCIT investigation into misuse of CMCA funds which led to Sheppard’s arrest.