By Theckla Gunga – EM TV News, Port Moresby
All court cases at the Bomana District House were deferred to January 29 and February 5.
Senior Magistrate, Cosmos Bidar made the adjournments following power outages at the Bomana District Court.
Most of the cases that were supposed to have appear for mentions include wilful murder and sexual penetration.
According to the Court Dairy, 13 cases were listed for allegations of sexual penetration, two for wilful murder and the remaining for false pretences and drink driving that resulted in the death of a person.
18 detainees mostly in their mid-twenties, who had neatly dressed up to appear for mention, were later asked to return to court either on January 25 or February 9.
For some it was frustrating. All 18 were escorted back to the prison where they are currently being remanded.
Such power outage does not only affect the court hearings, but becomes a challenge for correctional officers minding the Bomana prison.
During the outage, warders are expected to increase their thinking capacities to monitor prisoners and any persons passing through the jail premises, especially at night and during major events.
The power outage started around 8:30am today and continued through the afternoon.
It is understood PNG Power workers are working on power lines in Bomana area.