Fiji Police have ruled out human trafficking or abduction in the case of a 22-year-old man who was assaulted and his vehicle stripped in Kalekana, Lami a week ago, and have since charged seven people including the juvenile over the incident.
In a statement Commissioner of Police Brigadier-General Sitiveni Qiliho said: “Unless those who claim to be victims of abduction attempts come forward to allow investigations to be conducted, the claims will remain nothing more than just a hoax.”
The seven including a juvenile were among 12 people questioned by police over the incident that happened in the early hours of Sunday, 9 October. They have been charged for various offences including assault, assault causing actual bodily ham, damaging property, theft and receiving stolen property. More are expected to be taken in.
Mr Qiliho has also called on the public to disregard social media posts and articles alleging abduction which are absent of a police response describing such narratives as “nothing more than fear mongering and a cowardly attempt to create panic for personal gain, that being social media popularity and public attention.”
Reassuring the public, Mr Qiliho added: “I reiterate once again, the Fiji Police Force will never intentionally not inform or alert the general populace of a crime trend that is a threat of their safety. Fijians have nothing to fear and our doors remain open for any individual, group or organisation who seek clarity on these issues as we will be more than happy to sit down and provide statistics rather than publicly engage in a public commentary in the hope of avoiding unnecessary panic. Be assured that the Fiji Police will investigate all claims if information is provided.”
