Women raped, K16,000 stolen

National, Normal
Source:

The National, Tuesday July 31st, 2012

By ELIAS LARI
TWO women were raped and store goods and cash worth K16,000 were taken when a bus was stopped at a road block last Saturday on the highway between the Southern and Western highlands provinces.
 People travelling in a 30-seater PMV bus were held up between Wara Kagaul along the Highlands Highway by a group of men who are believed to be the supporters of a losing candidate in one of the Southern Highlands seats.
Simon Dixie, who was travelling on the bus, said that he and others watched helplessly as the two young women were dragged into the nearby bush.
The criminals were armed with bush knives and fled with everything, including store goods and cash.
The majority of people targeted appeared to be from the Ialibu-Pangia electorate of caretaker Prime Minister Peter O’Neill but the attackers were from another electorate.
Victim and store owner Francis Kondo, who lost more than K6,000 worth of store goods said that he did not know why they were targeted continuously.
Kondo said many people were terrorised and called for security personnel to be posted permanently in the area to prevent frequent harassing of innocent travellers.
Last Tuesday a business development representative officer for the Cocoa Cola Amatil was also attacked in the same area.
Patrick Pima was driving back on his company vehicle to Ialibu station when he was confronted by the same mob.
Pima was then ordered to give the keys and jump at the back of the vehicle and then driven into the bush.
He was punched and hit with woods and iron objects.