Jayapura, Papua (ANTARA) - The New Zealand government has sought information on the legal process instituted against the armed Papuan group accused of shooting New Zealander Graeme Thomas Wall in Papua last year, a top police officer said.
"New Zealand Ambassador to Indonesia, Jonathan Austin, has asked about the legal process against the perpetrators," Papua deputy police chief, Brig.Gen. Eko Rudi Sudarto, said in Jayapura, the capital of Papua province, on Wednesday.
Ambassador Austin raised the question during an online meeting with the Papua police on Tuesday (March 23, 2021) and was informed about the police's handling of the case, he informed.
Graeme Thomas Wall, who worked for PT Freeport Indonesia, was fatally shot by members of an armed Papuan group in Kuala Kencana, Timika, Mimika district, on March 30, 2020.
Related news: New Zealander killed in Papua shooting
One of the perpetrators, Tandi Kogoya, a battalion commander of armed Papuan criminal groups operating in Intan Jaya district, was killed in a raid in Iwaka on April 9, 2020, Sudarto informed.
The police had also detained another suspect, identified as TW, over his alleged involvement in the fatal shooting at the gold mining company's office that ended in the New Zealander's death.
"The law enforcement against the armed criminals is going on," Sudarto said, adding that the meeting with Ambassador Austin did not just focus on the shooting case
During the meeting, Ambassador Austin also offered cooperation in a capacity-building program for Indonesian police officers stationed in Papua province, he added.
"We have warmly welcomed the offered cooperation,” he said.
The Papua provincial administration has been making efforts to restore normalcy in Intan Jaya district, which has witnessed a spike in violence against civilians and security personnel in the past two years.
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Intan Jaya recorded its bloodiest month in September, 2020, with armed groups launching a series of attacks in the area that claimed the lives of two soldiers and two civilians and left two others injured.
The armed groups have continued their acts of terror in the new year, which involve hit-and-run tactics against Indonesian security personnel, and violence against civilians to instill fear among them.
On January 6, 2021, at least 10 armed Papuans vandalized and torched a Quest Kodiak aircraft belonging to the Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) at the Pagamba village airstrip.
On February 8, 2021, an armed rebel reportedly shot a 32-year-old man at close range in Bilogai village, Sugapa sub-district.
The victim, identified by his initials as RNR, sustained gunshot wounds on the face and right shoulder and was taken to the Timika Public Hospital in Mimika district on February 9.
In a separate incident on February 9, 2021, six armed Papuans fatally stabbed a motorcycle taxi (ojek) driver. (INE)
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