Former Papua New Guinea PM temporarily avoids arrest

Port Moresby: Papua New Guinea’s ex-prime minister Peter O’Neill won a temporary reprieve in a corruption case Wednesday when a court agreed to a brief suspension of his arrest warrant.
Acting police commissioner David Manning announced Tuesday that a warrant for O’Neill relating to graft allegations had been issued by a district court, but he refused to give details due to the “sensitivity” of the investigation.
O’Neill has denied the charges, calling them politically motivated, and refused to cooperate with police — claiming a lack of legal process, including not being officially presented with the warrant.
“If this were a serious matter, not a political power play, a formal process would be in place that would have seen legal representation made to my office,” the former leader said in a statement on Tuesday.
Papua New Guinea’s national court on Wednesday granted O’Neill a short suspension of the arrest warrant until Monday, when the court will hear further arguments.
O’Neill’s long tenure was marked by a string of corruption allegations, including the purchase of 40 Maseratis for an Asia-Pacific leaders’ summit he hosted — in a country where few homes have reliable electricity.