Four charged with airport murder

FOUR of five men charged with armed robbery and the wilful murder of a man at Jackson Airport in Port Moresby, appeared before the Waigani Committal Court yesterday and were told to return next Thursday with their lawyers regarding their possible bail applications they were individually querying about.
“Your matter is a serious one and I just cannot let you go out there, even on bail, without your lawyers making a proper submissions before me,” magistrate Fred Tomo said when one of the accused told the court that they had been in custody for three months and three weeks.
The four accused are Hito Kila (Tosh) (29) of Aiwao village Ihu, Gulf, Nicholas Daniel Baki Obara, 43, of Waima village in Bereina, Central, Brian Aruwasina, 25, of  Rabaraba village in Alotau, Milne Bay, Orira Dabada, 38, of Madaguba village in Koiari, Central and Ismael Robert (Iksy) Omae, 30, of Aiwao village, Ihu, Gulf.
Each accused faces two charges, one of wilfully murdering an Engan, Len Kambao – an offence which contravenes section 299(1) of the Criminal Code.
The other offence is of all of them collectively alleged to have stolen from the deceased K747,954.
The court documents state they had all been in possession of two factory-made pistols with which they were armed.
This offence contravened section 386(1) (2)(a)(b)(c) of the Criminal Code.
The incident occurred on June 2, at about 8am at the Jacksons Airport terminal.
According to court documents, the deceased, Kambao, was in the company of two of his friends by the bakery within in the terminal when they were confronted by two men who shot him in his thigh and ran out of the terminal with a bag of cash containing K747,954 belonging to the deceased.
They boarded a waiting vehicle and got away. But before doing so, they fired to shots to scare the onlookers.