Lae Police

Lae Metropolitan Superintendent, Chris Kunyanban, issued this appeal in his New Year message.

The Lae metropolitan command will begin its New Year operations starting at 6pm this evening and ending at 6am on January 1^st, 2021.

They will be visiting every suburb and especially the settlements to ensure residents peacefully welcome the New Year.

Considering their limited logistics and manpower, Kunyanban is calling on the community to help them.

Today, concerned members presented a petition to the Lae Metropolitan Superintendent, giving the law enforcers 14 days to respond to their demands.

A petition calling for immediate police action against petty criminals at bus stops was handed to the Lae Metropolitan Superintendent, Chris Kunyanban.

The petition had 712 signatures on paper, while social media support is still pouring in.

Metropolitan Superintendent, Chris Kunyanban, said this was a factor behind a recent escape from the cells.

Kunyanban said detainees recently cut through the Lae holding cells fence and escaped when they were taken out to have their shower.

And while the fence has been fixed, the problem still remains; and that is overcrowding.

Kunyanban said while those who escaped were held for minor crimes, the cells also have people who have been remanded as well as convicted prisoners.

Operations Commander, Chief Inspector John Daviaga, thanked his men and women for behaving and working well together to witness the election of a new Member of Parliament for Menyamya.

Newly-elected MP, Benjamin Philip, also commended the men and women in blue for ensuring a safe election.

He said: “I have witnessed their conduct and I must commend them for a great job throughout the election. They have indeed demonstrated a great deal of policing and I say thank you.”

For example, mobile phone users are not immune to random text messages telling them they are the lucky winners of a huge amount of money. Because of this, Lae police have decided to raise awareness on the issue.

Lae police recently highlighted that a group of people are texting random mobile users, scamming them into thinking they have won a large sum of money.

In response, police have advised the public to be critical when receiving messages that seem too good to be true – because they probably are.

Between 1st of February to 30th of September 2019, then suspect, Howlader Ripol, allegedly continuously harassed two female (names withheld) employees while working for Somi Enterprise located within the Papuan Compound.

According to a statement obtained from the 19-year-old victim, she was harassed whilst performing her duties on numerous occasions.

Most times, police were told the suspect watches porn videos on his cellphone and tells the victim to watch with him but the female employee refuses when realising that the movies contain sexual contents.

The suspects, who are Madang-based, were driving into Lae when they were stopped at Eriku near LFA and searched by Special Response Unit 102.

They allegedly found quantities of drugs under the front passenger seat.

“The driver of the vehicle was also found to be carrying a loaded factory made pistol with live ammunition. The pistol has been confiscated with the person in possession of it, a newly elected Council Ward Member, arrested and charged for being unlicensed,” reported Lae police.

At about 12.30pm on Friday, an armed robbery was carried out in a busy shopping area by a gang who had stolen a 15-seater bus earlier.

Lae police report that the bus was stolen with passengers onboard next to the Sir Ignatius Kilage stadium.

“Criminals posing as genuine passengers held up the bus crew and passengers and directed them to Two-Mile, where the rest of the gang was,” reported police.

On July 1^st, without her family noticing, she ran after her elder brother who had gone to Kamkumung market in Lae.

Lae police said: “Along the way, she was enticed by a young man believed to be from Highlands, when he gave her a K2 and told her that they would buy lollies. He then got her on a PMV bus with him and travelled to the Raun Wara area.

Lae police report that he had escaped from Buimo Correctional Services and was apprehended, sent back only to escape again when he was transferred to Barawagi CS, Simbu.

“Police had been receiving telephone calls that there had been attempted armed hold up in the area. SRU 104 was on routine patrol when they came across the escapee, who was armed with a homemade gun,” police stated.

Police intervened where the suspect was shot in the leg and apprehended.