18 Aug 2004

New Caledonia hold two men over police shooting

1:34 pm on 18 August 2004

Police in New Caledonia have detained two people in connection with the shooting of a senior police officer near Noumea two years ago.

The two unnamed men have been taken to the main jail on suspicion of having tried to kill Lieutenant Colonel Jean-Marie Garrido when he led a police force during disturbances in St Louis.

The Nouvelles Caledoniennes newspaper reports that the man alleged to have fired the weapon has demanded he be freed.

The other suspect is alleged to have been an accomplice in the shooting.

The attempted assassination occurred during the violent stand-off between Wallisian settlers and Kanaks in suburban Noumea which forced the closure of the main road.

The police officer survived the shooting but is now confined to office work.