Victims’ relatives want city police to investigate deaths

RELATIVES of the two teenagers found dead on the Kokoda Track last month are appealing to National Capital District (NCD) detectives to investigate the deaths.
Acting Northern police commander Snr Insp Sailas Tojune said for reasons known only to them (the relatives), “they don’t want us (Popondetta police) to investigate the deaths”.
“So I have contacted Asst Comm (crime) Hodge Ette who has approved the relatives’ request,” he said.
“But then, police headquarters has no funds to deploy the detectives to Popondetta town to conduct investigations.
“I have also requested Sohe MP Alfred Amuli and Governor Garry Juffa to help in bringing over the NCD detectives to Popondetta.
“But I am still waiting for their (Amuli and Juffa) response.”
Snr Insp Tojune said relatives of the dead, both cousins from Northern, wanted investigations to commence quickly to put the case to rest.
“The bodies of the teenagers were found in Myola at the Central-Northern near the 96km track,” he said.
“We only have the post-mortem report.”
Northern administrator Trevor Magei had earlier said the teenagers probably died from hypothermia (cold) and were found about 40km away from Owers’ Corner near Central’s Sogeri.
“They were walking to their villages in Northern,” he said.
“The location where the villagers found youths was not part of the main track.
“The youths were believed to have been found 11 days after they died.”
Magei said the teenagers left Owers’ Corner last Dec 27, with a group of boys and after three days of walking, they lost contact.