Police Director of Traffic SSP Mitieli Divuana has asked the Divisional Traffic Officer West to liaise directly with the family of the man who passed away in the horrific accident in Koroboya, Vatukoula following concerns raised regarding police behaviour at the site and when handling the body.
Ajeshwar Nand was driving a truck loaded with pine logs when he allegedly lost control while driving down a slope on Saturday afternoon.
A resident of a nearby settlement alerted the authorities after discovering the truck on its side.
Police say he was trapped underneath the logs, was unresponsive, and attempts to get him out were unsuccessful due to the site of the accident.
His body was eventually retrieved on Sunday morning. Nand’s brother Hirdesh Nand says his brother lay under the logs for almost 20 hours and was ill-treated as no one cared about him.
He claims the body was handled like a dog and placed in the back of a van with no one with him.
Nand also claims that on Saturday and going into Sunday morning, the officers at the site were drinking yaqona and laughing away.
The brother also alleges that he was not granted access to the site but the truck owner and others not relevant to the incident were there.
Nand asks did his brother not have rights or dignity even after his death.
SSP Divuana has asked the Divisional Traffic Officer to discuss directly with the family any issues they may have with regards to the conduct of the investigation as this has not been raised to the Police directly.
Police say following which they will be able to comment further.
They say the workers were granted access to assist in getting the pine logs loaded.
Police add all care was taken when they transported the victim to the hospital.
