C4 - Murder of APW - Boyce at Tantui PW Camp

By mid-1945, Allied bombing and the blockade of Ambon had created severe food shortages for both Japanese forces and the Allied prisoners of war held at Tantui Prisoner of War Camp. Starvation and disease were widespread among the prisoners, many of whom resorted to desperate measures in an attempt to survive.

Private W. F. Boyce (VX25109) of the 2/21 Australian Infantry Battalion was arrested after stealing a small quantity of food, together with a watch and several cigarettes, from Japanese stores. He was placed in solitary confinement, where he was subjected to ill-treatment. By this stage he had become emaciated, suffered from severe tropical ulcers, and was regarded by his captors as mentally disturbed. On 23 July 1945, Boyce escaped from solitary confinement but was discovered hiding in the camp latrines shortly after his disappearance was noticed.

Following his recapture, Boyce was not brought before a properly constituted military court. Instead, he was taken to a location near Galala, Ambon, where he was executed on or about 24 July 1945. The Australian prosecution alleged that his killing constituted the unlawful murder of a prisoner of war. Under the laws and customs of war, a prisoner could not lawfully be executed by military authorities without a valid trial and sentence imposed by a competent court.

After the war, Australian investigators reconstructed the circumstances surrounding Boyce's death from witness testimony and documentary evidence. Their findings led to prosecutions before an Australian War Crimes Court of those responsible for ordering and carrying out his execution.