Some of the police officers who were on duty on the night Kali Fungavaka was arrested and allegedly beaten up in detention, have given their evidence at the Nuku'alofa Magistrate's court. One witness alleged one of the accused officers stood on his chest while another choked the victim on the neck, as he was being searched inside the Nuku'alofa Central Police Station on the night of August 17, 2012.

Inmates who were in custody in the station that  night when the victim was arrested, alleged to have witnessed him being beaten up, kicked and choked.

A woman police officer told the court she was working on the night to register those who were arrested for being drunk. She said she heard swearing in English coming from outside as she was sitting at her desk in the complaint office.

"I saw two of the accused officers with a man now known as Kali and they were holding each of his hands while another police officer was at the back. When they reached inside the station, Kali fell down on his back. He was drunk and was not still as he struggled." She said she didn't know if he was too aggressive and fell or he was let go to fall.

She said Kali was still swearing and he got up and sat with his back on the wall of the complaint office while another accused officer yelled why was he still out there. She said Kali's relative Tavake was then brought in and he told Kali to be quiet. Tavake was taken inside the watch room by two other police officers.

She said she saw one of the accused police officers bend down and hold-up Kali's head looking to punch him. "A woman sergeant working with me that night told him to stop it and to take him in properly. The accused officer then left and Kali was taken into the watch room.

While the witness sat at her table she heard a bang from the watch room. "I came and stood tiptoed to have a look inside and saw one of the accused officers holding up the victim's shirt and pinned him to the wall. Some of the other accused officers were inside as well as Tavake. I turned around and came in and sat on the table and didn't see anything else," she said.

Cross-examined

On being cross-examined by one of the defence counsel Mele Kioa said the accused said that Kali fell on his own because he was wriggling and was aggressive but they did not let him go. She said, yes Kali was aggressive, but if they held his arms he would not have fallen to the floor. "They let him go, that's why he fell down," she said.

She was asked that one accused said it was not true that he held Kali's head up to punch him. She answered this was the truth of what she saw.

The sergeant on duty that night said that she was sitting at her desk at the complaint area and also saw Kali being brought in. He was swearing and was resisting and aggressive. Due to this he fell out of the two officers' grip and hit the wall, she claimed.

She said she saw one of the accused officers kneel down looking like he was to punch Kali. "I told him don't do that and take him properly inside the watch room." This evidence collaborated with the other officer's evidence that she saw one of the accused kneeling down to punch the victim while he was on the floor of the complaint office.

"I sat at my desk for 8 to 10 minutes before I went outside for a smoke. I did not look inside the watch room. When I came in later Kali was already taken in and I only saw the heads of some of the accused officers inside the watch room. I was later informed by another officer that there was a blood on the victim. I had asked one of the officers three times if Kali was alright. He said he was fine, while laughing," she said.

Arrest

Another woman police officer in her evidence told the lower court, she too was on duty on the night at the complaint office and she also overheard someone cursing in English. She saw the two arresting officers come in holding a man and she saw the collar of his shirt was ripped.

The two accused officers could not control him and they held his hands to the back in a form of arrest where they bent his hands and held it to the back while Kali was swearing. She said the two accused officers threw him down and he fell on the floor and hit the side of the wall. She heard Kali ask 'why did you do that for?'

Kali then sat up with his back against the wall and one of the accused officer threw him into the watch room and they disappeared inside.

She said while she was concentrating on her work she heard a bang from inside the watch room and she thought to herself that a beating was taking place inside. She heard one bang and Kali swore. She also heard Tavake apologizing to forgive his brother because he was too drunk. "I heard Tavake apologize three times," she said.

Later she caught a glimpse of the victim's legs being dragged into the hallway by two police officers in overalls. She said it was around 5:00am on August 18, when she saw the victim again as he was carried out to be taken to hospital. She said she saw blood on the victim's face.

A counsel for the defence put to the witness that the accused officers said they did not throw Kali down when they came into the station. She said this is what she saw happen because she heard Kali 'ask why did you do that for?'

Officer

Meanwhile, a male police officer who was on duty that night in his evidence said that he was one of the officers who arrested Tavake, and he was inside the same watch room with Kali.

He said Kali was hard to control while he was being searched inside the room. He said one of the accused police officer's came and held Kali's neck and choked him and sat him down on the floor. 

Kali and Tavake kicked and tried to get up, then one of the accused officer stood on his chest as he was lying on the floor and another accused police officer came and stood between his legs and took off his belt as they searched him, he alleged.

"When Kali was taken out of the room I remained inside with Tavake but he was concerned about Kali." The witness told the court when Kali was taken out of the room he was still speaking but the next thing he knew was that he was lying on the hallway to the prison cell and he was quiet.

Inmates

Yesterday afternoon, some inmates who were in custody at the Central Police station on the night in question also gave their evidence.

One inmate who is a permanent prisoner at the police station, whose job is to clean the cells and other odd jobs said he is sometimes free to roam outside his cell and the night of August 17, he was standing at the hallway of the prison cell block.

He said he saw a man being brought inside to the watch room and he could see from where he was standing that he was beaten up by many officers who were around him. "I saw their backs as they beat him up." He said as they went inside the room he moved to the back of the hallway wall to get a clearer look. He saw one of the accused officers choked Kali and pushed him down at the doorway of the room.

He said he saw Kali was stomped on the head by one of the accused officers. "When they got to cell number 1, I went inside my cell as he was put into cell number 7," he said.

A girl witness who was also in custody for being drunk on that night said she was in cell number 1 with two other girls and they heard a loud noise and it was like someone was being beaten-up. She heard swearing in English coming from the front search room. 

She said she not see the beating but she saw when they dragged Kali through the hallway area close to the steps, he was punched by one of the accused officers. The victim fell down and was stomped on by one the accused officers. "Before he was punched he was still talking but when they dragged him down to his cell he was quiet," she said.

The police officers who started their evidence on Tuesday and continued on Wednesday afternoon, before the inmates gave their testimony.