Villagers flee after cop killing

HIGHLANDS police divisional commander Supt Simon Kauba has urged Kagul and Kaupena villagers in Southern Highlands, who fled from their villages after murdering a young policeman recently, to return.
Kauba, who is also the assistant police commissioner, said the damage had been done and there was point for the villagers to go into hiding, adding that not all the villagers were involved in the killing of the young policeman and seriously injuring his colleague.
He appealed to community leaders to work closely with his policemen and surrender the suspects to police.
Kauba said the liquor ban in the province was imposed by the provincial executive council and  police were only doing their job to maintain checkpoints and stop people from smuggling liquor into the province.
He said people smuggling in liquor by crossing Kagul River were breaking the law and police were doing their job by following up on a tip-off to confiscate the liquors.
He said that it was inhuman for the villagers to attack a policeman from their own province with bush knives and axes and throw his body into the fast-flowing Kagul River.
Kauba said his policeman did not commit a crime and deserve to die in such a manner.
He said the villagers should allow his men to take the liquor away, instead of murdering his policeman and seriously injured other now recovering at Mendi Hospital.
He said if the local leaders did not want to surrender the suspects, police would look for the suspects themselves.
Kauba said the villagers involved would not get away with their criminal activities, they would face the full force of the law when arrested.
Meanwhile, he said police were still looking for the body of the policeman along the river banks.