Fight costs two lives, homes

TWO men are dead, three suspects from New Hanover are detained and homes burned down in a fight that erupted over a woman in Kavieng, New Ireland.
As the fight enters its fourth day, the story of the woman who has gone into hiding is slowly being pieced together by police.
The fight started on Monday after a woman left her partner for another man.
According to Kavieng police station commander Insp Gabriel N’Drihin, the woman from Yangoru, East Sepik, was in a relationship with a man from the same area.
“However, she decided to end her relationship and started a new relationship with a man from New Hanover,” Insp N’Drihin said.
“This angered the man who mobilised his relatives and friends residing at Kopkop’s Yangoru block along the Buluminski Highway, five kilometres out of Kavieng town and chased two of the suspects away.” He said the two New Hanover men with supporters armed with bush knives and a crossbow struck back.
Insp N’Drihin said a man from East Sepik was slashed and killed, a second man from East New Britain was rushed to the Kavieng General Hospital but died on the same day.
He said the suspects escaped, but four homes were burned down, leaving four families homeless.
On Tuesday, a suspect was sighted in Kavieng and chased by locals but police intervened and detained him.
Two other suspects were also detained the same day.
Insp N’Drihin said the situation was still tense yesterday.
He said the people of New Hanover residing around the Kopkop area were regrouping near the Utu Secondary School but the Kavieng taskforce team calmed the situation.
He added that there was another police unit watching the seas to monitor the movement of boats into Kavieng.