Aussie, charged with smuggling K90m in drugs, denied bail

 News that matter in Papua New Guinea

Aussie, charged with smuggling K90m in drugs, denied bail

PORT MORESBY: The 31-year-old Australian man who was charged with smuggling 168kg of methamphetamine valued at K90 million into Papua New Guinea (PNG) from the US has been denied bail.

Magistrate Paul Nii on Saturday (Oct 9, 2021), through an extempore ruling, denied 31-year-old Sean Anthony Honey’s urgent application for bail at the Waigani committal court and ordered that he be remanded in Bomana Prison.

Details of the court proceedings were reported by The National:

Australian denied bail

October 12, 2021The NationalMain Stories

AN Australian man accused of smuggling 168kg of methamphetamine valued at K90 million into Papua New Guinea from the United States has been denied bail and remanded at Bomana prison.
Magistrate Paul Nii on Saturday through an extempore ruling decided on 31-year-old Sean Anthony Honey’s urgent application for bail at the Waigani committal court.
He was previously refused police bail.
Through his affidavit, Honey said he would not run away after being granted bail and also cited a medical condition.
However, prosecution lawyers submitted that the defendant may interfere with state witnesses and may also conceal evidence.
Taking both sides’ submissions, Magistrate Nii made a ruling in which he stated that the “drug of methamphetamine is a foreign object that was allegedly brought into this country” and that the “defendant’s medical issues and other things can be addressed while in custody”.
Magistrate Nii then upheld the prosecutor’s submission and the application for bail was refused.
Honey appeared for arraignment yesterday.
The lawyer representing PNG Customs, Tom Kaleh, presented the charges against Honey.
Honey has been charged with two counts of processing and smuggling 168kg of methamphetamine valued at K90million under Section 149(1) and (2) of the PNG Customs Act.
Magistrate Nii asked Honey if he understood the charges, he replied: “Yes.”
Kaleh told the court that he wanted to adjourn the matter for a month to give enough time for investigators to establish allegations against Honey.
Magistrate Nii said: “A month from now you can come back and inform me about the progress of the case, and if you would like to make amendments to the existing information, that can be done four weeks from now.”
The matter was adjourned to Nov 18 for mention.
A task force team made up of police and Customs allege that a large quantity of methamphetamine was smuggled into the country by a shipping vessel that arrived from the United States and berthed in Lae before making its way to Port Moresby.
It is further alleged that the drug was brought in consignments of food storage buckets.
Upon providing a search warrant, his home was searched and several items were seized.
The items seized included one unlicensed single-shot gun, one unlicensed pistol, live ammunitions and the methamphetamine stored in white buckets labelled “food storage” and marijuana.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Growing unemployment rate in Papua New Guinea

Image
News that matter in Papua New Guinea Growing unemployment rate in Papua New Guinea (Employment stagnant since 2014) PORT MORESBY: Employment in Papua New Guinea (PNG) has remained stagnant since 2014 with millions of unemployed looking for jobs. The formal job market currently can only accommodate between 400,000 and 500,000, Institute of National Affairs executive director Paul Barker says. “As more young people enter the job market this year after graduating from tertiary institutions and schools, the chances of securing formal employment is slim. “Employment had remained stagnant despite the increase in potential workers coming out of educations institutions,” he added. Read on for more details as published by The National : Hard to get jobs January 27, 2022 The National Main Stories By DALE LUMA MILLIONS of eligible workers around the country are looking for jobs in the formal sector, which currently can ...
Read more

Sugu Valley tribal war death toll rises to at least 30

Image
News that matters in Papua New Guinea Armed tribal warriors on the move in Sugu Valley. Sugu Valley tribal war death toll rises to at least 30 PORT MORESBY: At least six tribes have been fighting in Sugu Valley (Kagua-Erave, Southern Highlands) since Feb 10, 2019, without any signs of an end and peace. In fact, the death toll has risen to at least 30, up from 11 on May 23, 2019, and the opening of a new battlefront in Sumbura near Poroma with multiple deaths reported in 24 wards. Armed tribal warriors on the march into the forests and jungles. PNG Cyber Monitor had on a May 25, 2019, posting ( https://pngcybermonitor.blogspot.com/2019/05/real-life-rifles-bows-and-arrows-bloody.html Real life rifles, bows and arrows bloody fights in PNG ) highlighted the bloody battle waged by tribal warriors armed with rifles, bows and arrows and knives. PNG Cyber Monitor is again highlighting the plight of the villagers who have been living in fear as reported by The Nationa...
Read more

Sorcery shame for Papua New Guinea in X’mas

Image
News that matter in Papua New Guinea Sorcery tortures and violence are still being practised in Papua New Guinea in this 21st Century digital era. Sorcery shame for Papua New Guinea in X’mas PORT MORESBY: It was international shame for Papua New Guinea (PNG) this Christmas when sorcery reared its ugly head. Six women were stripped, bound to poles and burnt with hot knives as they screamed in pain, watched by an unsympathetic crowd. In a video that has gone viral in the internet, the women were accused of practising sorcery in Southern’s Enga. Police Comm David Manning described the sorcery torture as vile, inhumane, uncivilised, void of any human decency. “Papua New Guinea cannot progress without letting go of these horrific traditional beliefs. We have launched an urgent probe into the incident in Aiya’s Pawayamo village in Kagua-Erave.” The news break was published by The National : Horror torture of women Decem...
Read more