Police investigate alleged assault of a farmer by senior company executive and colleagues in Navua in 2018

Police have today confirmed that they are investigating a report lodged earlier this week where a 55 year old farmer of Batiniyaka Settlement Navua was allegedly assaulted by a senior company executive and colleagues.

Acting Assistant Commissioner of Crime – Mesake Waqa says this report says the alleged assault occurred during a dispute over a piece of iTaukei land lease in 2018.

We have asked Police if any report was lodged about this incident in 2018, and whether any investigation was conducted.

We are awaiting their response.

However photos have emerged of the person getting assaulted by the group of people and him lying on the road with a bloodied face.

The person assaulted is Nainoca Kaukibeqa who is part of the mataqali Dravuni in Deuba.

Speaking to fijivillage News today, Kaukibeqa confirms that he had a dispute with Grace Road regarding their mataqali land, and he also stoned a digger and injured the operator after they allegedly threatened him to get off the land.

He alleges that is when he was assaulted, but when Police came, he was taken in and later charged with damaging property and assault.

However he says Police did nothing to his assailants although he had visible injuries.

Kaukibeqa confirms that Police came this week to take his statement regarding the 2018 incident.

Meanwhile Grace Road Group says 6 years ago, they were informed that Kaukibeqa had been throwing rocks at their digger for unknown reasons while their digger was clearing their farmland.

Grace Road says on 30th June 2018, the digger was damaged due to the stoning and the operator was hit by rocks and had his chest and arm injured.

The company says their team went to see Kaukibeqa to find out what the issue was.

They claim that he ran towards the team swinging a sugarcane knife and threatening to kill them.

The company after tussling, they managed to take his cane knife and threw it away and then Kaukibeqa allegedly started assaulting the members with his fists.

Grace Road alleges the man seemed to be drunk and his other family members were encouraging his assault rather than calming him down.

They say soon, the police arrived at the scene and arrested him.

The company says later he was charged for damaging property, criminal intimidation and act to cause bodily harm and received the suspended imprisonment sentence.

Grace Road Group says it is surprising that this story came out now after 6 years as this is a closed criminal case.

They say the family still live at their home and his son works for Grace Road now.

The company says the timing of this story makes them question who is behind this and why they are trying to harm Grace Road.