Ex-soldier gets 30yrs for murder

By BEVERLY PETER
A FORMER soldier was jailed for 30 years by the Waigani National Court yesterday for the 2011 killing of an Australian man.
Justice Teresa Berrigan jailed Central man James Paru, 62, after the court found that Paru had used a Mossberg pump action shotgun to kill 50-year-old John Hulse on July 23, 2011.
Justice Berrigan said the law regarded premeditated murder as serious case.
“This was a cowardly and heartless murder,” she said.
“A life taken is less arguable in any circumstance. It is clear that the gravity of the offence outweighs the matter in justification.”
Justice Berrigan also took into account the age of the defendant and time spent in custody and ordered that the term be spent without hard labour.
She deducted 10 years, two months and four days from the sentence for time Paru spent in custody.
Paru will now serve 19 years, nine months and 26 days in jail.
According to the court records, Hulse was the boyfriend to Paru’s niece, Taita Richard.
The court heard that Richard lured Hulse down to Napanapa to collect his passport. Richard dropped her uncle off at Napanapa on that day and called Hulse to go pick up his passport from him.
Hulse was then shot in the chest by Paru and died at the scene.
Paru told the court that he had killed Hulse as a favour to Richard.
He said Richard wanted her boyfriend (Hulse) dead because he owed her K300,000, and was abusive.
Paru told the court during his trial that Richard had asked him to kill Hulse.
“I thought I was doing her a favour when I saw her crying when she spoke to me about her trouble with her boyfriend.”