Jimmy misses hearing

By MELYNE BAROI
POLICE prosecutor John Wamugl told a court yesterday that he wants to issue a warrant of arrest for Southern Highlands election manager Alwynn Jimmy by Feb 21.
Sergeant Wamugl said this at the second mention of Jimmy’s misappropriation case at Waigani committal court.
“If the same thing continues next month, it will be the third time Jimmy is not present in court and I will be applying for a warrant of arrest,” he said.
Jimmy’s lawyer Gibson Bon presented a medical certificate to the court, saying Jimmy had just been discharged from the Pacific International Hospital.
Bon also told the court that they would be moving to seek an adjournment from the court as Jimmy was a key witness in an election petition trial in Southern Highlands.
Wamugl said the prosecution was ready to respond to the application and urged Jimmy to be in court.
“Jimmy is yet to be properly arraigned and, therefore we will demand for that to be done before anything else,” he said.
“The important thing is for Jimmy to be arraigned, must be in court to understand the charge.”
Magistrate Danny Wakikura said the matter was still fresh and adjourned it.
The 61-year-old, from Kopkop village in Kavieng, New Ireland, was charged with dishonestly applied, conspiracy, abuse of office and receiving stolen property.
He was arrested on Dec 14 in Port Moresby and questioned for paying three cheques to his own hire-car business Kuranebou Hire Cars between May and August of which, two cheques were worth K158,400 and one K56,660.
Police said the money belonged to a subsidiary trust account of the Southern Highlands 2022 general election operations.
Jimmy is on a K1,000 bail.