Man in Lae sentenced to two years for gun possession

By JACINTA COHLEE
A MAN in Lae was sentenced on Wednesday to two years imprisonment for being in possession of a homemade gun.
Elizah Dagi, 22, from Bukawa village in Nawaeb, Morobe, was found guilty by the Lae District Court and will serve his sentence at Buimo Prison.
When finding the defendant guilty of the offence, Magistrate Pious Tapil said Dagi’s punishment should serve as a warning to others in the community that having offensive weapons was a serious offence.
“Let this be a warning to other youths who are doing such illegal activities,” he said.
The court had also noted that Dagi was not a first-time offender and that he had a previous conviction for drug possession.
“You are not a first-time offender and you should have learned your lesson,” Tapil said.
“You should have gone back to the village to have a good life there because the village is close.”
According to court documents, Dagi was spotted by a police patrol behaving suspiciously at Five-Mile outside Lae, Morobe, on Sunday and was stopped and searched when the weapon was found.
Dagi admitted to the police that the homemade gun was his and he was then arrested and charged.