Woman, 77, killed on way to friend’s place
Alanieta Balei was crossing road near Police station when she was hit by a car.
Ropate Bolatini is still struggling to accept that his family friend died in a mid-morning road accident in Lami yesterday. A vehicle travelling towards Navua hit Alanieta Balei, 77, at around 10am, killing her as she was crossing the road.
Ms Balei’s body lay covered on the Queen’s Highway in front of the Lami Police Station until officers transferred her body to the Colonial War Memorial Hospital in Suva.
“She was a family woman and my wife could not stop crying when we learned about the incident,” 84-year-old Mr Bolatini said.
The mother-of-five lived with one of her daughters in Wainibuku, in the Suva/Nausori corridor. Police spokesperson Ana Naisoro said the victim got off a bus and, while crossing, was hit by a car. She was on her way to Mr Bolatini’s house to visit his family.
Police cordoned off the area around 10:30am on the Queen’s Highway while conducting preliminary investigations.
The driver of the white Nissan Sunny B14 was taken into custody and questioned at the Lami Police Station immediately after the accident. Some bystanders took issue with Police for taking time to remove the victim’s body.
But Police spokesperson Ana Naisoro said there was a process officers had to follow at crime scenes.
“People need to understand that officers will take time to preserve evidence and take necessary detailed information at the scene for investigations.
“The desired result for any investigation is a successful prosecution and it starts at the scene of the crime.”
Police were also seen confronting civilians taking photographs, having to eventually block the view of the public from both sides with vehicles. Residents in the typically quiet Solomoni and Naimawi Streets were surprised with an influx of vehicles after Police re-directed traffic away from the accident zone.