Two policemen were arrested and charged for armed robbery, attempted murder, unlawful wounding and conspiring to commit other crimes in Port Moresby over the weekend.
NCD Metropolitan Superintendent, Perou N’Dranou, said the pair identified as Constable Gabi Gal of Minj, Jiwaka Province, a male adult attached with Gerehu Police Station, and Constable Albert Robert, a male adult from Upper Mendi, attached to Boroko Police Station, were arrested and detained by members of the Gordon Minor Crimes Unit.
Chief Superintendent N’Dranou said Gal and Robert and a third policeman, who remains unidentified at this stage, allegedly used an unmarked vehicle to rob, assault and injure four civilians on April 19 this year.
He said the three policemen allegedly removed the registration number plates of their vehicle to conceal their identities before holding up a PMV truck at Nine-Mile. They allegedly assaulted the driver, a female occupant and commandeered the vehicle towards the back road leading towards Morata and Gerehu, where it is alleged betelnut and mobile phones belonging to the victims were stolen.
That same day, the policemen allegedly, whilst under the influence of liquor, shot and wounded a man at Gerehu and later placed a firearm near another man’s ear and fired, leaving the victim, a lawyer by profession, heavily traumatised.
The Metropolitan Commander issued instructions for their immediate supervisors to bring them in to face investigations and charges but no actions were taken by concerned authorities until the matter was referred to members of the Gordon Minor Crimes Unit, who kept the suspects under surveillance and arrested them at a night club within the city on Saturday night.
Gal fought with the arresting officers and attempted to escape but was subdued, arrested, charged and locked up in the police cell.
N’Dranou said additional charges of escaping from lawful custody would be prepared and served on Gal in the course of the investigations.
The two men were charged for conspiring to commit other crimes under sect 515 of the criminal code, armed robbery under Sect 386 of the criminal code, two counts of attempted murder under sect 304 of the criminal code and unlawful wounding under section 322 of the criminal code.
The Metropolitan Commander said the arrest, detention and charging of these two policemen shows the Constabulary’s commitment in the fight against police abuse and corruption, which remains a concern to the government and citizens of Papua New Guinea.
He said the corrective action taken by members of Gordon Minor Crimes unit, directly conforms to Police Commissioner Gari Baki’s intention to reduce police abuse and corruption within the Constabulary.