By Mohamed Jaward Nyallay
The Sierra Leone Police has confirmed the death of Sergeant Nathaniel Lamin, who went missing over five weeks ago during a controversial operation in northern Sierra Leone.
Sgt Lamin went missing on the 17th of March after a raid on Mano Village in the outskirts of Magburaka in the Tonkolili district went bad. He was reportedly part of a team of seven police officers who had been deployed in the village to settle a dispute between farmers and herdsmen when they suddenly came under attack by the villagers.
All of Lamina’s colleagues escaped, leaving him behind.
The incident sparked a frantic search for the officer.
On Tuesday, the Head of Media at the Sierra Leone Police, Brima Kamara, told Politico that suspects detained as part of the investigation had confessed to burning the officer after beating him. The police spokesman said they were yet to ascertain when the officer was beaten to death and then burnt or whether he was beaten and then burnt alive.
“We know the man is dead now. The suspects confirmed it. They claimed that they set him on fire. So we have gathered the ashes and brought it to Freetown for examination, to make sure it’s true,” Superintendent Kamara said.
The examination of the ashes of the victim is expected to be done by the country’s only Coroner, Dr Owiz Koroma. It is not clear yet how long it will take.
The Police’s conclusion matches with what they had suspected since Sgt. Lamin first went missing.
On the 21st of March this year, Deputy Head of Media for the Sierra Leone Police, Samuel Saio Conteh, told Politico that “some people in the area have told us that the officer was beaten to death. However, we haven’t seen any evidence of that because his body has not been recovered.”
On the 23rd of March, the police confirmed that they had arrested six more people, after arresting 11 others just days before.
Politico understands that some of the 17 suspects had been released in the course of the investigation.
The police have not revealed information on the suspects or how many of them will be charged for what is now a murder case.
The village where the incident occurred is 20 kilometers away from Magburaka, which is the headquarters town of the northern district of Tonkolili.
Sources say the village has been abandoned by residents since the incident. The sources described scenes of battered doors and evidences of charred houses, indicating signs of some violence.
Cattle related conflicts are common in the northern region of Sierra Leone.
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