Fighting erupted again yesterday in Hagen City as two tribes went head to head after a youth succumbed to his injuries in hospital after spending two nights due to serious injuries sustained during a scuffle that occurred during an earlier clash.
Provincial Police Commander for Western Highlands, Superintendent John Sagom advised that fighting and the burning of shops occurred on the outskirts of the city after a drunken brawl ensued due to an unsettled issue by members of the Moge-Solo Tribe and the Moge Kopi-Pinambe Tribe during the Independence Weekend.
“There was a scuffle between the youths over market fee collection resulted in a fight, which ensued on Friday leaving one youth being severely injured and taken to hospital, whereby after two days, he succumbed to his injuries,” Sagom said.
This caused the clashes to occur leading to the burning and destruction of the market.
Security forces were quick to attend to the situation and swiftly dealt with it and now the PPC has stationed men at the location to dissuade any further attempts to fight.
He commended his men for their quick response to the situation and said criminal investigations into the incident is underway to find the suspects involved in the scuffle.
“We have identified several suspects and have urged the leaders of both factions to surrender them so that the law can deal with them,” he added.