Papua New Guinea’s police and army have formed a joint taskforce to investigate a shootout between the two forces that left four men in hospital with gunshot wounds.
Businesses located near the confrontation closed their doors and there were reports of looting following the clash.
“After last night’s stand off, culminating from a drunken brawl between our soldiers and policemen … senior officers from both the defence force and the constabulary have now formed a task force to investigate,” deputy police commissioner Jim Andrews said.
“I appeal to all members of the constabulary to refrain from provoking or inciting further violence with our counterparts from the Papua New Guinea Defence Force (PNGDF).”
The altercation began in the early hours of Saturday morning in the Port Moresby suburb of Boroko.
Police say a group of soldiers were drunk and disorderly on the street in front of a nightclub.
They arrested several soldiers and locked them up at the nearby Boroko police station.
A short time later, a group of soldiers arrived at the police station and managed to free three soldiers from the cells.
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