Recapitulating the complainant’s evidence earlier adduced at the magistrate court, by the Registrar of the high court, Alfred Taylor Conteh, she never knew the accused before, until he was arrested by the police, in respect of the matter before the court.
She intimated that she remembered the incident of 9 April 2014, and on the day in question, she was returning home from work very late at night together with her former co-worker, Clifford Fredrick Smith, when the accused, Babatunde Eric Lewis who was riding a motorbike with a pylon snatched away her hand bag, containing physical cash, brown purse and other valuables.
The witness had told the court that after the accused had snatched away her hand bag, another motor bike rider arrived on the scene and enquired from them as to what the problem was, adding that they explained to him and he asked Clifford Fredrick Smith, who was accompanying the complainant, Martha Forster to join him track down the accused.
She further testified that whiles they were chasing them, the alleged criminals, crashed with the motor bike along Dundas Street and Pademba road intercession, in the west part of Freetown and ran away.
According to the complainant, she was later informed by Clifford Fredrick Smith that they had got hold of the said motorbike, stating that she immediately went to the crashed scene for proper identification, and they later on took the motorbike to the Sierra Leone Correctional Centre guard post.
She explained further that the motorbike in question was transferred to the Operational Support Division headquarter on Bass Street in west part of Freetown, where statement was obtained from her and Clifford Fredrick Smith in respect of the matter before justice Monfred Sesay of the High Court of Sierra Leone.
Furthermore, the disappointing aspect of the trial process was that Clifford Fredrick Smith, who testified at the preliminary proceedings in the magistrate court, could not be traced at his residence by the state prosecution for his testimony in the High Court, even though he was subpoenaed.
The accused, Babatunde Eric Lewis’s naked aggression against the complainant blatantly violated Section (32) Sub Section (2) of the larceny act, as replaced by Section (2) of the imperial statute criminal adoption, act N0.16 of 1971 of the laws of Sierra Leone.
At the concluding stage of proceedings, Justice Monfred Sesay ordered that the accused be relocated at the male Correctional Centre on Pademab road, west of Freetown.
The matter comes up again 29 June 2017.
Land dispute at Goderich…
24yrs boy murdered
By Alhaji Turay
Twenty four years old boy, Mohamed Kabba Kargbo, on 9 April 2017 met his untimely death at Metchem, Goderich during a land dispute between a certain Sanusi and some residents of the same metchem community.
According report reaching this press Sanusi, who claimed to be the legitimate owner of the land in question, at one particular occasion dispatched his men including the deceased, Mohamed Kabba Kargbo to check on the caretaker on the disputed land.
Reports further stated when the deceased and his men arrival at the said land at metchem Goderich, which is situated along the Freetown peninsular road, they were attacked by the other contending residents for the same land.
This press also learnt that Sanusi had dispatched the deceased and other persons to seek permission from the caretaker, so as to enable them demarcate his own portion of the land.
It was alleged that Sanusi’s men and the deceased later embroiled in a bitter argument with the contending party, who were mostly residents of metchem and in the process, violence erupted between the two parties, thus leading to the untimely demised of Mohamed Kabba Kargbo.
The other people who had gone with the deceased to the disputed land to check on the caretaker managed to escape the scene of crime, and immediately went and reported the incident to Sanusi that they were attacked by some residents in metchem, but that after the attacked, they did not see the deceased, Mohamed Kabba Kargbo and Mohamed Banya alias Bo school .
In light of this, Mr. Sanusi allegedly instructed his men to report the matter at the Adonkia Police Post, at Goderich, and when the police visited the scene of crime, reports say they found Mohamed Kabba Kargbo lying dead in the pool of his own blood.
As a result of this, eight people were arrested and detained, whiles the other alleged murders are still at large.
The disease remains was later transferred to the emergency hospital at Goderich where a postmortem examination was conducted, and the matter was transferred to the Lumley Police Station at Lumley for further investigation.
AYV further gathered that the alleged murders were later put on police, after which the same matter was then, transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department Headquarters on Pademba road in Freetown and the suspects were re-arrested and charged to court in respect of the alleged murder.
Some of the suspects who were charged to court made their first appearance before Magistrate, Albert Moody of court N0.2 in Freetown on Monday 19 June 2017.
The accused persons were represented by lawyer Hannah Ahmad and the matter was prosecuted by Inspector Sorie Conteh.
Magistrate Albert Moody ordered that all accused be remanded at the Male Correctional Centre in Freetown, and the matter was adjourned to Thursday 22nd June 2017.
