Michele Clemens and Matthew Iovane said they were kidnapped, stripped and tortured by a tribe.
A 17-year-old boy charged with raping an American backpacker and robbing her and her British boyfriend on the Kokoda Trail of Papua New Guinea has been released on bail after nearly three months in prison because of a lack of evidence.
The teenager, who cannot be named because he is underage, was arrested in January following a sensational story published by British tabloid The Sun that claimed cannibalistic tribesmen — so primitive they could speak only in grunts — kidnapped, stripped and tortured American Michele Clemens and her boyfriend British Matthew Iovane, a former reality TV star and DJ.
“They looked very scary in native costumes and what looked like warpaint and came closer before circling around us,” Iovane told The Sun.
“They tore up my T-shirt to blindfold me and the awful thought crossed my mind that we could be on the menu.”
However, a 10-day investigation conducted in PNG last month and published exclusively on news.com.au quoted more than a dozen key eyewitnesses who alleged the backpackers
committed a litany of offences in PNG.
It has been alleged the couple short-changed porters, failed to settle restaurant and hotel bills, swum naked in rivers, had sex in public, lied to obtain their trekking permit, made false statements to police, tampered with evidence and are still refusing to settle bad debts left in PNG to the tune of more than $35,000.
On Tuesday, PNG broadcaster EM TV published an interview in which the Governor of the province where the alleged kidnapping took place thanked news.com.au for investigating the case.
They claimed to have been attacked by Papua New Guinean cannibals.Source:Supplied
“The investigative report revealed and exposed that this was a scam, and so I just want to commend the media for exposing this,” Oro Governor Gary Juffa said.
In another EM TV report published on Thursday, the broadcaster said the presiding judge in the case released the 17-year-old defendant because of a lack of incriminating evidence and the
defendant’s denial of the charges.
“After listening to the submissions, Judge Mogish told the court that there was no primary evidence of the alleged offence before him, and said the courts cannot hold anyone without police evidence,” the broadcaster said.
On reaching his decision, the judge took into consideration a letter of good character from the 17-year-old’s headmaster Mrs Ricky of Wardship Demonstration Primary School in Port Moresby. The letter said the student was well-behaved inside and outside the classroom and a positive example for other students.
“He has no set record of bad behaviour, he is just upright and he is humble,” Mrs Ricky told this reporter in an interview held at the school, adding that the student often helps others and always treats females with respect.
The teenager is expected to return to school next week. His ordeal, however, is far from over. He is still expected to face charges of robbery and sexual penetration without consent at a court setting later this year.
His co-defendant, 19-year-old Kokoda Trail porter Toksi Jacob, is still being held in remand at Bomana Prison in Port Moresby and will also face court later this year.
Ms Clemens could not be reached for comment. She has made no statements about what happened in PNG since her interview with The Sun.
Mr Iovane has not replied to numerous media requests for comment since this website published its first report of doubts and inconsistencies with his story.
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