First witness in Kaiwi trial

By VANESSA NIKEN
THE first witness in the Bhosip Kaiwi murder trial appeared in the National Court in Waigani yesterday and told of her close relationship with Kaiwi’s partner Jenelyn Kennedy and some torrid times she went through with him, including how he smashed a bottle on her head.
Rachael Ipang, from Raicoast, Madang, who was Kennedy’s childhood best friend, was the first of 36 witnesses the States expects to call before acting Judge Laura Wawun-Kuvi to prove that her husband Kaiwi indeed eventually kill her in June 2020 from five days of torture in their Korobosea home.
Kennedy was 19 and a mother of two. Kaiwi has pleaded not guilty to her murder.
The 36 witnesses have been categorised – the ones before the incident, some during the incident and others after the incident.
When asked by the State, Ipang said she lived for 20 years in Port Moresby.
She told the court that the extent of her relationship with Kennedy was very close.
“I know Jenelyn, we stayed together at Murray Barracks, we grew up together at Murray Barracks,” she said.
Ipang said in 2016, she was with Kennedy when she found out about her biological father who told them to go live with him.
Prior to that, when asked by the State whether she knew Kaiwi, she said in December 2015 Kennedy was friends with Kaiwi on Facebook and then he asked Kennedy to meet him.
“We went to church at Kaugere, then Bhosip messaged Kennedy to meet up with him,” Ipang said.
“We went to meet him at the Koki bus-stop, he came and picked us up, drove us around and then dropped us at the house at Downtown.”
She said Kennedy chose to move in with Kaiwi when her family found out about their relationship.
Ipang said in 2019 she saw Kennedy again with her two children at Murray Barracks when Kennedy came to her grandparents’ house.
She followed Kennedy and her children back to their home at East Boroko, stayed with them for two weeks and left in November 2019 because she was working.
“Jennelyn wanted me to go stay with them, help look after her kids because Bhosip took his second wife home and was busy with her,” she said.
“When I left, my sister went and stayed with them.”
Ipang said in February 2020, she went again and stayed with Kennedy and Kaiwi with their children.
“I stayed with them until March when we celebrated Jennelyn’s birthday,” she said.
“We were drinking while Bhosip and the boys drove out.
“After they arrived, Bhosip broke a bottle on Jennelyn’s head after she came out of the toilet.
“He also got a bush knife and chopped the other boy’s ear, then he rushed the boy to the hospital while Jennelyn was left in the house with us her head and face covered in blood.”
Ipang said after Kennedy had told her about what happened, she told Kennedy to take her children and run away, go back to Murray Barracks.
“All the doors were locked so we went into the room and crept out of the window,” she said.
Ipang said Bhosip went and took them back to Korobosea, and on April, 2020, she left to go to Murray Barracks.
She then went back to Kennedy and her family in May, 2020, because it was their child’s birthday.
“I went back and stayed with them until June 2020,” she said.
“Bhosip came out of the house looking angry and asked me to call the boys over to him while I was looking after the kids outside the house, Jennelyn was in the room.
“Bhosip locked Jennelyn in the room the whole night until next day at 11am.
“I saw Jennelyn came out the house with black-eye. Bhosip then ordered me to go clean their room while he took the kids.
“I proceeded to the room and found that his belt, screw drivers, kitchen knife and chains were lying on the couch in the room, with some of their clothes covered with blood stains which Bhosip told me to burn.”
The trial continues today.