Three men from Kandrian, in the West New Britain Province, have been sentenced to life imprisonment by the Kimbe National Court.
19-year-old Joe Raphael, 20-year-old Micah Raphael and 27-year-old Bokomo Manlem were sentenced to life in jail for killing a police reservist, George Misang, in Kandrian last year.
The three pleaded guilty to killing 54-year-old police reservist George Misang on 4 September 2017.
From Paon village in Kandrian, the three were involved in a fight that night after consuming homebrew when the deceased came across them.
He intercepted to stop the fight but was hit on the head with stones by Micah Raphael and Bokomo Manlem, before Joe Raphael stabbed him in the heart with a bayonet-shaped knife.
He stood no chance of survival from the wounds that were inflicted on him.
In addition, Acting Judge Nickolas Miviri also noted that Bokomo Manlem is a convicted escapee, with a warrant of commitment from 26 May 2016. He was serving a 15 year concurrent sentence for three offences when he escaped.
A clear defiance of the law that did not deter him from committing another offence.
The court said all prisoners were equally to blame for Misang’s death and got life sentences accordingly.