5 Feb 2008

Senior PNG police officer to be investigated over alleged gang assault

9:45 pm on 5 February 2008

Papua New Guinea's police commissioner says he's ordered an investigation into an alleged beating of a woman by a gang led by a senior police officer.

The officer, who is reported to be the head of one of the specialist Police units, was allegedly drunk as he led a vicious assault on the woman in Port Moresby's Nine Mile settlement last month.

Neighbours of the woman say the officer threatened them with a rifle as his group took the woman away using an official police vehicle, beat her up and dumped her naked onto the back of the ute.

Commissioner Gari Baki says the officer won't be suspended until the investigation is complete.

"Like everything else, we have a normal internal disciplinary process that we assume when a situation like this is recorded so this report has been given to me almost a week and a half ago so I have given directives for our people to investigate that and Internal Affairs people to investigate that and if the allegations are true then the officer will be suspended and dealt with just like any other members of the public."

PNG police commissioner Gari Baki