Virgin Australia crew allegedly raped and robbed in Fiji by Reuters

Written by Rishav Chatterjee

(Reuters) – Fiji’s government said on Thursday that police were investigating incidents involving two crew members of Australian airline Virgin Australia who were allegedly victims of rape and robbery at a club in the early hours of New Year’s Day.

The crew members were in the popular tourist destination on a layover before flying out the next day, Fiji Acting Police Commissioner Jockey Fong Chiu said in a statement.

Virgin, which said it was aware of the alleged incidents, had sent people to Fiji to provide support, but did not provide further details in a statement to Reuters.

Fiji Police said the investigation so far has concluded that some Virgin crew members went to a club nightclub.

“Unfortunately, two crew members were victims of alleged robbery and rape after leaving the night club trying to return to the hotel,” Chiu said.

Viliami Gavoka, Fiji’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation, explained in a statement that these were two separate incidents of alleged robbery and sexual assault that affected two different Virgin crew members.

Gavoka expressed regret over the alleged incidents and said that the suspect known to the police for the alleged sexual assault had been questioned and that the investigation was continuing.

The South Pacific nation of Fiji is a popular tourist destination, welcoming 76,845 visitors in November, mostly from Australia, New Zealand and North America, according to the country’s tourism website.

The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade told Reuters it was aware of the reports but declined to comment further.