PNG MP Mori slapped with eight charges

Papua New Guinea Member of Parliament from Chuave Wera Mori has been slapped with eight charges, including official corruption, and locked at the Boroko police station in Port Moresby on Saturday..

The charges were based on evidences gathered through a joint investigation done by the Police and Ombudsman Commission since 2015.

The charges were two counts of official corruption, armed robbery, obstruction of police duties, deprivation of liberty, perverting course of justice, break and enter and stealing and causing disaffection within the Police Force.

Mori was arrested and taken to Badili Internal Investigation Unit (IIU) for an interview on January 31, but was suspended and interview resumed last Saturday.

After the interview, the Member was formally arrested and charged but released later on a police bail of K1000 (US$314).

According to a statement approved by IIU investigator Mugua Kend and released by Chief Inspector Stanley Poga Monday, two officers from the IIU Police Headquarters - Senior Constable Stanley Poga, Senior Constable David Kianda and Kwalum Tande of Ombudsman Commission – went to Chuave on June 29, 2015, to investigate an unauthorised investigation conducted by a fraud squad and anti-corruption officer into the district’s treasury.

However, it was claimed that the accused was communicating through mobile phones with Chuave district treasurer Michael Aglua, Chimbu provincial police commander Albert Beli, CID officer Timothy Simbia and the MP’s tribesmen to disturb the three officers from continuing the unauthorised investigation.

In a media conference, MP Mori described the matter as politically motivated.

“I am a victim of a malicious cover-up scam involving a corrupt policeman who is closely associated to the former Chuave MP Jim Nomane,” he said.

Mori claimed that the policeman in the center of this scandal influenced his colleagues to effect the arrest in a deliberate attempt to interfere with a major K2.9 million (US$912,000) fraud investigation implicating Nomane and his associates after a report delivered by the Auditor-General.

He has called on Police Commissioner Gari Baki to look into the matter, as it was an internal police matter and has got nothing to do with him.

SOURCE: POST COURIER/PACEWS