Lae

For the first time in four years, a Hunters match is being played outside of Port Moresby.

The SP PNG Hunters will be in Lae for only a few days, but their schedule is fully booked.

The Lae and Bumayong secondary schools, including Markham primary, are in for a treat, as the Hunters, including the Enga Mioks and Lae Snax Tigers, will be visiting them on Friday morning.

The teams and their staff will also call into the Angau General Hospital.

After that a coaching clinic for local club and teachers will be hosted at the Lae Rugby League ground.

Investigators have found credible evidence to charge certain employees of the Lae City Council. 

Of the four, three are cashiers and one is an accountant. 

The charges laid are:

1.   A male cashier has been charged one count each on misappropriation, abuse of office and false pretence for the amount of K11,897.44.

2.  A male cashier has been charged one count of misappropriation and stealing for an amount of K20,029.62.

On March 9, a Sector Response Unit was on routine patrol through West Taraka , when they stopped a suspicious looking person and upon searching him, police found his bag filled with homemade guns.

The man was immediately apprehended by the SRU 103 members, taken to Lae Central Police Station and further interrogated.

It’s been revealed by the suspect that he was moving firearms and was to be picked up by another group in a vehicle which was described by the suspect.

The described vehicle was arranged by a person working for a company.

The team from Wafi-Golpu yesterday presented the feasibility study update to Deputy Prime Minister Charles Abel and Mining Minister Johnson Tuke in Port Moresby.

The update will form part of a revised proposal for development in support of the Special Mining Lease application, which was also submitted to the Mineral Resources Authority (MRA) in Port Moresby the same day (March 20).

The deceased’s body was found floating at a lake in Lae, commonly known as Raun Wara, on January 22, by passersby.

Lae metropolitan superintendent, Commander Anthony Wagambie Jnr, said it was alleged that the deceased was with two other men when they were assaulted by these police officers, who were reportedly using a hired vehicle and were under the influence of alcohol.

The man was 60 years old on 26 June 2016 when he sexually assaulted an 11-year-old girl in Lae, Morobe Province.

He committed the act in the kitchen of his family home.

He pleaded guilty to one count of sexual penetration at the Lae National Court and was sentenced to 10 years in hard labour.

Five years of that sentence were suspended due to his age.

He was on bail prior to being sentenced by the court. That bail was forfeited and he will now serve a remaining balance of five years in jail.

This time the accident occurred on the newly-completed freeway at Eight-Mile.

The collision was between a Hornibrook NGI truck and PMV bus, both full of passengers.

Police say the accident occurred when the Hornibrook truck, whilst travelling into Lae, ran off its lane, skipped over the pavement separating the lanes on the freeway and plunged into the oncoming PMV bus.

The PMV bus was heading to Nadzab.

Police Traffic attended to the scene.

Yesterday, the public at Lae’s main market assisted police in arresting four suspects caught stealing a laptop from a vehicle.

According to police, the four managed to open the vehicle while the owner was in the market.

Thanks to the public, they were arrested and charged.

Police later posted pictures of the suspects on their social media page.

They say they will continue to post faces of frequent street peddlers on their Facebook page so the public can keep an eye out for them. 

The number was an initiative introduced by the Lae Metropolitan Superintendent Commander Anthony Wagambi Junior early this year.

The Lae Metropolitan Superintendent believes that the introduction of the Lae Police Emergency number created an easier and quicker access to police.

All Lae Metropolitan Police vehicles have since being marked with the toll free number (70903300)

Staff went on strike as of 8am this morning and plan to extend to a week if responses to two petitions are not met by management.

Mathew Som, a spokesperson on behalf of staff, spoke to Loop PNG from Lae saying that strike is over pay rise increments and staff overworked without being compensated.

He said firstly, staff salary increments were made by a toea or two annually, which they say is not right since the Bank of PNG has ceased circulation of the one toea and two toea coins.

Staff want salary increments to be increased to around 50 toea or more.