Court

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Wesley Kopman who is remanded at Bomana for absconding his bail was recently slapped with another charge on top of the three he was already in court for.

Police charged him on allegations he used a fraudulent trick on July 14 last year to get a vehicle on hire for 280 days without paying for it.

The court was told today by Magistrate Mekeo Gauli that Kopman claimed he was a gold trader to the owner of the vehicle and managed to use it on hire at K1,000 per day.

 From mainland China, Hense Wu appeared in court before Magistrate Cosmas Bidar who read and explained his charges to him before the court.

Police allege he beat up a national male, Michael Peter Mell on Sept 26 at the Elisio Wholesale at Gordon after Mell stole from his shop.

Wu however said through a statement in court that the man he was alleged to have beaten up had previously stolen from Elisio four times adding it was not him but the public who beat Mell up.

This particular case has been in court since July and the Waigani Committal Court was told the lack of cooperation from complainants in the case has contributed in the matter being prolonged.

Three months is the time frame given to police to investigate cases and produce what is called a hand up brief or investigation files.

Even a record of interview is also yet to be carried out on the 22-year-old defendant, who was accused for sexually assaulting a six year old girl at Five-Mile on six different occasions.

Magistrate Laura Kuvi today said the number of women appearing in court for assault cases in relation to affairs is on the rise.

Her comments today comes after Magistrate Mariestella Painap also raised the same sentiments last Thursday when handing down the sentence against a woman who assaulted another woman on assumptions she was having an affair with her husband.

Magistrate Kuvi said the Boroko District Court sees up to 10 unlawful assault cases a day, all related to fights between women over affairs.  

From Tatana village; Peter Kavea, Bobby Rarua, Boge Madaha Kevau, Leka Alex Rabia, Tatana Kapia and Nolan Lawrence William went before Magistrate John Kaumi today where their charges were read and explained to them.

The case was adjourned to Nov 22 while police continue their investigations into the incident.

Police will now have three months to produce a hand-up brief to the court and the accused, before the accused’s lawyer can file submissions in response to the investigation files. This has been the practice of the Committal Court process.

One of the accused, Peter Kavea of Tatana village briefly appeared at the Bomana District Court sitting today. He is remanded at Bomana while his other five friends are being held at the Waigani Police station cells

He will return to court at Waigani tomorrow together with his other four co-accused; Bobby Rarua, Boge Madaha Kevau, Leka Alex Rabia, Tatana Kapia and Nolan Lawrence William.

Three of the men surrendered themselves to police on Aug 23.

After a successful appeal, 42-year-old Taita Prichard from Bereina, Central province who is a naturalized Australian citizen was freed on Thursday.

A three-man Supreme Court bench acquitted her after it upheld her appeal, setting aside her conviction and sentence of 30 years with hard labor.

She was sentenced on Feb 12 this year after the Waigani National Court convicted her on Nov 11, 2015 for planning and using her cousin to murder her former lover, British man John Hulse in 2011 at Napanapa outside Port Moresby.

While all his co-accuseds’ cases have been committed to the Waigani National Court for trial, Willie Allan’s case remains at the District court, three years on after he first appeared.

Allan, who was charged with receiving stolen properties, armed robbery and conspiring with others to commit a crime appeared on Friday at the Waigani Committal Court.

Currently remanded at Bomana, Magistrate Cosmas Bidar said his case has unfortunately taken this long in court because Allan had earlier escaped custody before he was captured.

Allen Alex of Korobosea village, NCD went to court on Friday before magistrate Cosmas Bidar.

He was arrested on Oct 5 and charged with dangerous driving causing death after he surrendered himself to police in fear of his life.

Alex was driving a Toyota Coaster Bus along the Sir Hubert Murray Highway on Oct 5 when he lost control of his vehicle and hit a Grade 10 student, Ann Murray Makis opposite SVS 2-mile.

The deceased was walking along the Murray Barracks side of the road when she was hit by the bus and died instantly.