Police still investigating morgue case

By JAMES GUMUNO
POLICE are in the midst of completing their investigations into the illegal removal of three bodies from Mendi General Hospital’s mortuary on Jan 18.
Southern Highlands commander Chief Supt Martin Lakari told The National yesterday that he would be checking with investigators for an update tomorrow (today).
“We want to establish who was responsible for removing or releasing the bodies, or who authorised the illegal and criminal releae of the bodies,” he said.
The bodies, that of two women and a man, were believed to be sorcery-related executions, were recovered from the Mendi River banks on Dec 31, Jan 4 and 5.
The three were believed to have been killed in Karinz and their bodies dumped into the river.
Initial police investigations revealed that a group of people had held up the mortuary keeper at 10pm, forced him to open the door and started removing the bodies at 3pm when everyone was fast asleep.
However, both the provincial health authority chairman Dr Joseph Birisi and provincial administrator Joseph Cajetan issued a joint statement accusing Chief Supt Lakari and The National of giving and reporting false and misleading information on the case, denying that the morgue keeper was held up nor threatened as reported.
Chief Supt Lakari slammed the two, saying those responsible for releasing the bodies could be prosecuted for interfering and obstructing police investigations.
He said the bodies were subjected to police investigations and the hospital had unlawfully released the bodies.
Lakari said the bodies of suspicious deaths were properties of the state pending the police investigations and that the hospital had no authority to release them for burial as allegedly requested by family members and relatives of the dead.
He accused the hospital of deliberately concealing the evidence of police investigations into the deaths by releasing the bodies.
Chief Supt Lakari said those responsible for the illegal and criminal release of the bodies would be arrested and charged.