THE investigation officer in the case of an imam facing an incitement charge was questioned why he did not follow the right procedures when carrying out his duty.
In cross examination, the court heard the investigation officer from the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) by the name of Joape used a private vehicle when he arrested the accused, Faiyaz Ali Khan, during a prayer meeting at Toorak , Suva in January last year.
Defence lawyer Mehboob Raza questioned Joape why he used a private vehicle instead of a government vehicle when he arrested his client from the mosque, and why he handled the investigation alone.
Joape, in response, said there were only seven CID officers and they were all investigating a murder case at one of the nightclubs in Suva that same year.
He told the court that he served the accused a search warrant because of the allegations that he incited another man, between January 1 and 31 last year, to unlawfully wound one Mohammed Kannukarathi.
The court heard that Joape and two others searched the home of Mr Khan for half an hour despite not knowing the nature of the case.
Joape said it was part of an investigation to search the home of the accused to see if he had any information regarding the victim.
Mr Raza questioned the investigation officer whether he really did serve a search warrant to his client because it was missing from the disclosures served to him by the State lawyer.
He also asked why there was no record of what transpired during their search.
Joape, however, admitted that he did not have any notebook or diary to record the time nor the findings in their search at that time.
Mr Raza told Joape that he was a good friend of the complainant because their intentions were merely to humiliate the accused in front of church members.
Joape denied the statement made by Mr Raza.
The trial continues today.