Police in Auki Malaita Province have arrested and charged a 31-year-old male in relation to a wounding incident at Sarawasi logging camp, small Malaita on 11 October 2018.
It is alleged that the incident is connected to a land dispute connected to logging.
“It will be alleged that in the early hours of 11 October 2018 the accused went over to the victim’s residence,” says Provincial Police Commander Malaita Province Superintendent Timothy Apaesi.
PPC Apaesi adds: “It will be alleged that as the accused approached the victim he struck the knife on the victims back. Then he struck again and wounded the victim on both hands as the victim tried to defend himself.”
He says, “People in the community were alerted and they stopped the accused from further attacking the victim. They assisted the victim to Afio clinic for medical assistance. They reported the matter to Police through the Police Communications Centre in Honiara.”
The report was dispatched to Auki Police and Police attended to the report on 12 October 2018 where the accused was arrested and an investigation was carried out.
“I want to thank community members at the Sarawesi Logging Camp for responding to the incident before the police arrived and working closely with my officers on the investigations,” says PPC Apaesi.
The accused is facing a count of attempted murder and will be taken to court this afternoon (16 October 2018) for remand applications. The victim is an Asian and has been flown over to Australia for medical attention.