By Bradley Mariori
Government Departments, including the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC), have reiterated that they do not provide compensation to individuals under any circumstances.
This statement comes in the wake of an incident where a deceased individual was shot by a female police officer after attempting to seize her firearm in Madang.
Madang Provincial Police Commander, Acting Superintendent Robert Baim, addressed the situation involving the deceased, who was shot during an altercation with a female police officer last weekend in Dylup along the North Coast road of Madang.
According to PPC Baim, the female officer, accompanied by two other officers, was responding to reports of intoxicated youths causing disturbances in the community when the deceased approached the female officer and attempted to wrestle her firearm away from her.
In the ensuing struggle, the officer discharged her weapon, resulting in the death of the individual.
Following the incident, relatives of the deceased visited the provincial police commander in town to demand compensation from the RPNGC.
However, they were intercepted by police personnel and escorted to the Jomba Police Headquarters, where they were addressed by the Provincial Police Commander.
During the meeting, the PPC urged the relatives to bring forward any witnesses to the incident to provide testimony for the coroner’s investigation.
“For such cases, it will go through the court process, and no compensations will be entertained. The incident remains under investigation by authorities.”
In addition, PPC Baim emphasized the importance of caution when consuming illicit substances. He highlighted that substances like homebrew and marijuana can lead to severe consequences, including injury or loss of life.
PPC Baim called upon law-abiding citizens not to support illegal activities and urged the relatives to cooperate with authorities by providing eyewitness testimony to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).
