BY ROMINAH FAKA
The High Court is set to deliver its ruling today, Tuesday, July 15, 2025 on the first bail application for a man accused of killing a woman in Marau in 2023.
The ruling was initially scheduled for yesterday but Deputy Chief Justice Rex Faukona was sick.
The bail application was filed in the High Court for the defendant, Constance Manepania, who is charged with one count of murder and is seeking to be released on bail to see his family while waiting for his trial in August.
Police alleged that in the late evening of October 8, 2023, the deceased and some of her relatives boarded a canoe to an island called Ravi within the Marau area to sleep over so they could go out fishing later at night.
On the next day, at about 8am, the deceased and two other relatives boarded a canoe to the mainland to collect food and water for the group on the island.
At about 4pm, the deceased and the other girls loaded their canoe and departed for Ravi Island.
About few metres from the mainland, the deceased complained that she was not feeling and was afraid to go to Ravi Island, so she decided to stay back on the mainland.
The other girls left the deceased along the shore so that she could walk back home.
The deceased left Tawanikeni village along the sea shore back to her village.
Prosecution alleged that it was on her way back to her home village that the accused attacked her.
A witness who was on his way along the airport heard what sounded like a person crying. When the witness got closer to where this sound was coming from, he saw Manepania holding a bush knife in his right hand.
Manepania led the witness to where the deceased was lying unconscious then he stepped onto the deceased’s forehead and squeezed the neck of the deceased until she stopped breathing.
After that Manepania demanded and ordered the witness to take the dead body down to the sea and sink it.
The accused allegedly threatened the witness to carry out this act, saying he would cut the witness with the bush knife if he did not comply.
Police at Marau received a report of the incident on October 10, 2023, when villagers around Marau area saw the deceased’s body washed ashore in front of the Conflict Lodge.
Letiara Pellie from the ODPP is prosecuting and Ben Alasia of PSO represents Manepania.
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