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Sunday, February 14, 2010

Kapris story nears the climax


THE STORY gets better by the day!
Our source states that William Kapris had actually named two State Ministers who helped with K25,000 to arrange his escape from Bomana prison.

You can't get any harder story than that to show the world there is an underworld of PNG politics and its links to big time crime.

But for heaven's sake, this has got to be the figment of Kapris' imagination. He ought to have even been hallucinating after being given a rude awakening by policemen barging in and disrupting his blissful slumber in the lodge he was nabbed in.

Politicians, big businesses and even the common citizens go to great lengths to project a positive image to the rest of the world. And as responsible citizens, just as much concerned about the country's name and reputation, this newspaper too is mindful of the pitfalls of sensationalism in its reporting. But this is a story that was waiting to be told; in fact it was being played out as in a stage play with one scene closing for the entry of another.

And this has got to be the climax. It may in fact be the anticlimax as what follows from here is either a confirmation or denial of these allegations and prosecutions or referral to a leadership tribunal if there is some truth found.

Once it gets to that stage, it would be one man's word against another's.

The revelation in today's story further confirms rumours that have been circulating ever since the bank robberies a few years back.

We have paused to ponder whether to publish and be damned or not to publish (and be damned all the same).

We chose to publish because indications have been there all along - from a purported correspondence from behind bars to a justice of the National and Supreme Courts to the man's threat to spill the beans in a police interview.

Police Commissioner Gari Baki revealed on Friday that there was a near clash between policemen who arrested Kapris and a unit from Mc Gregor Barracks late night on the Saturday Kapris was arrested.

The policemen who arrested Kapris seemed to have forgotten all process and protocol by not taking Kapris to Boroko police station and locking him up.

He was told of the arrest couple of hours later and by three different sources.

He said when he learnt that Kapris was not at Boroko police cells, he directed Mr Huafolo and the Director for the Mobile units, David Manning to look for the unit which was driving Kapris around and have Kapris taken to Bomana.

When Mr Manning's unit approached the vehicle with Kapris, guns were pointed at Mr Manning, resulting in a near shootout.

That is yet another scene of this play starring Kapris touted as the country's most wanted man - a celebrity of sorts.

An epilogue to the Kapris story would detail why the two ministers would want the prisoner out, for whom he was carrying that side arm plus where the loot from the robberies was deposited.

Only then would PNG know whether Kapris was the true mastermind or simply a pawn to someone higher up.

But his revelation already of names of those higher up must have got somebody twitchy and will cause him or them to lose a good night's sleep - if there is any truth in them.

It is tempting to pity those involved with or through Kapris to rob and terrorise or help in his escape from lawful custody - all for the love of money!

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