Port Moresby Police recover stolen cigarettes

SEVENTY-FIVE of the 168 cartons of cigarettes stolen from a wholesale outlet in Port Moresby over the weekend were recovered by the Policing the Police Task Force Team (PPTFT) this afternoon at a private residence in Tokarara in the National Capital District.
The K1.3 million worth of Cambridge and Spear belonging to Choulai Wholesale outlet at Badili were stolen at 11am on Saturday 19 January 2019 at 2 Mile Hill.
Police believe that this was an “inside job” and have detained a number of employees of Choulai including the driver of the delivery truck and interviewed them over the weekend.
NCD Metropolitan Superintendent Perou N’Dranou praised his men for their tireless efforts over the last two days leading up to the recovery of the 75 cartons of cigarettes. He also thanked the community for all the support they had given to police over the last two days.
Officer in Charge of the Policing the Police Task Force Team Senior Sergeant Apollos Terry said with the recovery of the 75 cartons and capture of the suspects now in custody it was only a matter of time before the rest of the cartons of cigarettes and spear are recovered.
“The recovery of the cigarettes was largely due to the tireless efforts of the members of the PPTFT. Our men picked up information that a certain vehicle was selling cigarette inners around the city so we staked out a number of locations before we came across the vehicle and questioned the driver who led them to the residence where the 75 cigarettes were stored.
“Choulai offered to pay police the K100,000.00 reward money but I refused to accept it. The reward was meant for the members of the public. As policemen we are only doing our jobs,” Senior Sergeant Terry said.  Police Media