BY ANDREW A.B HALLOWELL KAMARA
Fuad Kamara alias Foday has been sentenced to thirty (30) years imprisonment for sexually impregnating a thirteen year-old girl and a class three pupil, also identified as the niece of the accused at Watson Street in Makeni , northern Sierra Leone on unknown dates in February 2019.
The accused was arraigned on two counts: sexual penetration of child, contrary to section 19 of the Sexual Offences Act No. 12 of 2012, and sexual abuse by person in Trust, contrary to section 25 (1)( a) of the Sexual Offences Act, No. 12 of 2012
The particulars of offence states that on unknown dates between the 1st day of February 2019 and the 28th day of February 2019, the accused person sexually penetrated and abused the victim, FMB as a person in a position of trust towards her.
The accused had called the victim into his bedroom and sexually assaulted her by inserting his PENIS into her vagina.
The victim did not report the matter to her mother or father, but both parents later discovered that their child is pregnant through a friend and later reported the matter to the police.
She was issued with a police medical request form for examination and later treated at the Makeni Government Hospital.
The accused person did not give evidence on oath but admitted to have sexually penetrated and abused the victim.
In his statement to the police, the accused stated that he saw the victim in the room of his brother, Moses Kamara and called her and had sex with her in the bedroom.
He confessed that he had sex with the victim on three (3) occasions at night and afternoon, and was responsible for her pregnancy.
The pregnancy was discovered after observations and a pregnancy test was conducted.
The victim did not intimate anybody about the sexual intercourse between her and the accused.
The accused was arrested at home and brought to the Mena Hills Police Station.
The evidence by the victim, her mother and the medical examination report were enough to conclude that the victim was under the age of 18 years at the time of the offence in question.
The High Court Judge in Makeni, Hon Justice Unisa Kamara, was of the opinion that the prosecution succeeded in proving beyond reasonable doubt that the victim was sexually assaulted and impregnated.
The prosecution had also relied on the testimony of the victim and that of the other witnesses.
The victim was sexually penetrated on unknown dates between the 1st day of February 2019 and the 28th day of February 2019.
In her statement to the police, the accused confessed to have had sex with the victim on three (3) occasions.
The fourth ingredient that the accused person was the person who sexually penetrated and abused the victim, the evidence implicating the accused with the offence in question comes from the victim and the accused.
The victim said the accused person had sex with her in the room of his mother.
The accused person admitted having sex with the victim in his room.
The accused is the uncle of the victim and known to her and her parents.
The incident happened at night and in the afternoon hours.
The victim has been a truthful witness and the court was satisfied that she could not have been mistaken about the identity of the person who sexually penetrated and abused her.
The court was sure that the evidence implicating the accused person was free from the possibility of error or mistake.
The court thinks that the prosecution succeeded in proving that the accused person is the person who committed the offences in question.
Aruna Jalloh Esq. represented the state. I. Samba represented the accused person.
The counts in the indictment were earlier on put to the accused person, and he pleaded not guilty to the offences.
However, the accused person was found GUILTY of the offence of Sexual Penetration of a child, contrary to section 19 of the Sexual Offences Act No. 12 of 2012, and GUILTY of the offence of Sexual Abuse by a Person in Trust, contrary to section 25 (1) (a) of the Sexual Offences Act No. 12 of 2012.
He was therefore convicted of the offences as charged.
COUNT I- FIFTEEN (15) years imprisonment in penal servitude, COUNT 2- FIFTEEN (15) years imprisonment in penal servitude and sentences to run concurrently.