By Mohamed Foday Conteh
Justice John Bosco Allieu has sentenced Alie Sajah Forster and Victor Emmanuel Sesay alias creature for pelting stones at the residence of the Deputy Minister of Defence, Lahai Lawrence Leema on the 1st February last year at Minah Drive, Juba Hill in Freetown.
Forster and Turay were arraigned in court together with one Michael Abass Turay on an eight-count indictment ranging from conspiracy to commit a murder, riotous conduct, carrying offensive weapon without lawful authority and throwing missiles among other offences.
The Judge, however discharged and acquitted the third accused person, Turay, of the charges levied against him by the State because the investigators failed to ascertain the veracity of his testimony that he was with one Mohamed Jalloh and one late Milton Ello during the time of the incident.
The State Prosecutor, Alberta Kargbo led in four witnesses including Constable 15756 Aiah Fengai, a personal security officer of the said deputy minister and an Operational Support Department (OSD) officer of the Sierra Leone Police (SLP); Detective Police Inspector Mohamed Kargbo of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID); the Operations Officer at CID, Mohamed Kugba Allieu and the deputy minister himself.
Fengai, in his testimony, told the judge that he was at the said residence at around 9 in the morning when the accused persons and others threw bottles and stones over the compound. He said that when he opened the gate, he saw a crowd proportionately made up of youths. He said the men told him that it was Leema that they yearn for and not him.
He said the men attacked and grabbed him but used his pepper spray to escape from them. He said the assailants then retreated for a moment and then attacked him again prompting him to fire a warning shot in the air. He said he then shot the first accused afterwards because he rushed at him.
The OSD officer also said that the second accused was armed with a ‘long machete’ during the incident.
The second prosecution witness, Detective Kargbo also confirmed to the judge that the first accused was shot by Fengai and that the said first accused was taken to Emergency hospital for treatment. He said it was at the hospital that he and other Police officers obtained a cautioned statement from Forster.
The third prosecution witness, Detective Superintendent Allieu told the judge that both the second and third accused persons were on the run using nicknames. He said that he and other officers were able to apprehend the second and third accused persons acting on tip offs.
The deputy minister, who was the fourth prosecution witness, told the judge that it was his younger brother whom he had sent to buy top up that came dashing and informing him that some men had attacked Fengai. He said that he was able to see the first accused in an aggressive mood towards Fengai while upstairs but that he lost sight of them just before the gunshot.
The first accused person Forster in his testimony told the judge that on the said date of the incident he and the others were rendering community help by cleaning the compounds of people in the neighbourhood. He mentioned the compounds of Tennyson Bio and Mr B among the several they cleaned that day. He said that the said owners of the compounds they cleaned gave them some money.
Forster said that they were divided into two groups with the second accused in another group in order to share the money. He said that it was while they were sharing the money that the second accused came running towards them. He said that the second accused told them that Fengai had used pepper spray on him. Forster said that the said officer came and told them that they were causing noise. He said the officer also pepper sprayed his eyes and left.
Forster said that the officer later returned with his gun and ordered that they move away from the place or risk being shot at. The first accused said that he confronted Fengai and that he was returning when the officer shot him.
The second accused also testified similarly to the first accused.
Justice Allieu found all three accused persons not guilty of conspiracy and then discharged and acquitted them on all four count charges of conspiracy.
However, the judge found the second accused guilty of count five; carrying an offensive weapon without lawful authority and was subsequently sentenced to five years on the said charge.
Both first and second accused persons were also found guilty on count six; throwing missiles and the two men were sentenced to one month imprisonment each.
The two men were also found guilty on count eight; behaving in a riotous manner and sentenced to 18 months imprisonment each.
The first accused, Forster, was sentenced to a total of one year and seven months imprisonment. The second accused, Turay, was sentenced to a total of six years.
Copyright © Politico Online 15/10/21
