Dad slams beating by police

By ABIGAIL APINA
A CONCERNED father from the Rabaul district, in East New Britain, has expressed concern about his son after he was beaten by police officers last Friday.
The man said the bashing was now affecting his son’s Grade 8 final examinations.
Bernie Wogan said his son and namesake, Bernie Wogan Jnr, had been traumatised since Friday after being confronted, questioned and bashed up by police near his home.
Wogan said people in the community had said the policemen were from the Kerevat police station and had been searching for a suspect who was a student from George Brown High School, in the Gazelle district.
Wogan said his neighbours told him later that an informant from Nonga village who was helping the police in their search for the suspect mistook Wogan Jnr for the suspect, which led the police to his home.
Wogan said he was disappointed with the informant as he had failed to verify his information before directing police to his home.
Wogan said the police went to his house in the early hours, knocked on the door and when his son opened it, the police bashed him up.
They later threatened him by pointing their rifles at him as he lay in shock on the floor.
He alleged the officers involved in the attack had been under the influence of alcohol and used abusive language on the boy while threatening him to release information regarding the suspect.
Wogan said the treatment of his son was wrong and caused him to sit for his final exams at Malaguna Primary School in a state of shock.
Wogan has reported the matter to Rabaul police and provincial police commander Sylvester Kalaut.
He said a formal statement would soon be compiled and presented to Kalaut.
Wogan said police bashed up several other students from Malaguna Technical Secondary School while searching for the boy they had been after.
He said the police entered his home without a search warrant.