Two men charged in cement worker's death [1]
Monday, August 19, 2013 - 22:20. Updated on Monday, September 9, 2013 - 18:40.
Two men have been charged in relation to the death of a 19-year-old male worker who was trapped inside a cement mixer, while he was cleaning it, at a brick manufacturing company at Sopu on Friday, August 16.
A second victim, a 16-year-old boy who was also inside the machine was seriously injured and is in Vaiola Hospital. It is reported that one of his legs was amputated due to the serious injuries he sustained.
The Deputy Police Commissioner ‘Unga Fa’aoa said one accused is charged with manslaughter while the other is charged with abetment at this stage.
He said the incident was reported to the police around 5:00pm and that the two victims had gone inside the mixer to clean the cement after the working day. One of the accused is alleged to have turned on the power switch to the machine while they were cleaning it, he said.
The Police investigation continues into what looked like an accident but there were other elements, including negligence, which why inquiries were still being made into the incident, he said.