Farm Men Stone Police
Force deploys elite unit to Kadavu after attack on officers
wenty officers from the elite Police Special Response Unit were deployed to Kadavu after officers conducting a drug raid on a farm were attacked. The deployment was in response
Tto requests from the Vunisea Police Station on Kadavu. The elite unit is based at Narere, Nasinu, and were taken to Kadavu by Police boats.
The officers based at Vunisea were pelted with stones by three men as they entered a farm in Levuka Village in the district of Yale.
Two of the three men fled under forest cover, while one was arrested. In direct command of the operations, from Suva, Police Chief of Operations, Assistant Commissioner for Police Rusiate Tudravu, has warned people against attacking Police officers on duty.
“If you want to attack Police officers, who are simply doing their work in making your communities safe, keep in mind that we have the resources and capabilities
to get to wherever you are - whether it is in the Southern, Western, Eastern or Northern Divisions - so be ready to face the consequences of your actions,” he said.
A source familiar with the incident said a fresh raid on farms believed to be cultivating marijuana was launched as soon as the officers arrived. He spoke to the Fiji Sun under the condition of anonymity.
According to a Police statement, officers uprooted nearly 1000 marijuana plants from the first of three farms which were raided. Information on the attack against officers reached Suva on Saturday morning. The unit was then deployed on the W.P Yavahuna and F.P.B Totogo Police boats at 2PM.
The source said the officers reached Kadavu two hours later. The team on the island was led by Deputy Divisional Police Commander South SP Sakeo Ganivatu. They trekked through dense forests and a steep mountain range for three hours, Police said. Kadavu, along with the Nadroga/ Navosa, interior of Ra and Ba provinces, and some districts in Cakaudrove, are common hotbeds for marijuana cultivation. Isolated from the more closely policed areas of the mainland, farmers and peddlers thrive in these areas. Police have ramped up efforts against drug-related crimes in recent months, calling it a “war on drugs”.