ON Oct. 11, Palau was shocked after a 37-year old government employee was found dead on the street in the capital of Koror. Kenneth Koshiba was shot with a gas-powered air rifle. This kind of violence is not a usual occurrence in Palau since the country has a strict law against gun possession with the last gun-related death reported in 1988.
Although air rifles is not illegal in Palau but airguns are usually used to hunt pigeons and birds. “I am shocked and it is unfortunate that things resorted to violence,” Remengesau told a press conference in the wake of the killing in October. Three men – Nicholas Kloulubak, Clifton Kloulubak and Michael Williams were charged with second-degree murder.
A few days after on Oct, 21, three suspected robbers attacked two Bangladeshi employees of a store in Malakal with a hammer. The two employees suffered injuries with one succumbing to death as a result of the beating. Until now, no arrest has been made as the suspects as seen in the surveillance images released to the media are covered in long sleeves, long pants, shoes and mask.
Both crimes were suspected to involve the use of drugs and now the feedback in the community is that Palau which is known, as an underwater haven is no longer safe with the presence of illegal drugs.
