Four killed were not part of a gang, says Simbai local

By ALBERT KAMANI
UPNG journalism student
FOUR people who were reportedly killed in Simbai at the Madang-Jiwaka border were not part of a gang but vendors who had travelled there to do business with locals, Jimi district health officer Joseph Mombo said.
He refuted claims by Madang provincial police commander Anthony Wagambie Jr in the The National on Monday that the four were part of a gang.
And people in Jiwaka have urged police to conduct proper investigations on innocent lives being taken before making comments to the media.
It is alleged that police were absent in Simbai during the incident as reported by Wagambie.
The people claimed there was still no police presence in Simbai and the situation remains tense and locals were crossing the border to do business.
Mombo said in Mt Hagen the two women and two men were street sellers from Jiwaka who went to trade with the Simbai people.
Mombo said the Simbai people, for some reason, turned around and attacked them, chopping their bodies to pieces.
“I am very sorry about the other street sellers who have received bush knife wounds  and still missing,” he said.
He urged the provincial police commander to conduct his own investigation into the killings and not rely on third-party information.
Mombo said a proper investigation must be conducted to find out the
real cause of the killing and urged concerned authorities in Madang and
Western Highlands to work closely as a team to resolve the problem once and for all before the situations got out of control.
He said it was a border issue and authorities must intervene quickly to address it.