By Janet Sesay
Detective Sergeant 9490 Mohammed Mallam Bangura, Exhibit Clerk attached to the Transnational Organized Crime Unit (TOCU) Hastings yesterday tendered six different Zenith Bank cheques before Magistrate Hannah Bonnie of Pademba Road Court No.1.
The accused persons: Mariatu Koroma, Sallay Koroma and Brima Forty Bangura were alleged to have conspired together with persons unknown to issue six different Zenith Bank cheques bearing names of different people to the Manager of Pee Cee and Sons Enterprise, Deepak Valacha , as payments for goods they obtained from the shop.
He recalled that on 27th September, 2019 while on duty, D.PC 13858 Kemokia R. also attached at the same station handed over to him one Zenith Bank Sierra Leone Limited Cheque slip with serial number 1290163 bearing the name David Sesay and another blank Cheque with serial number 129163.
He also tendered another cheque belonging to the same bank with serial number 1290459 bearing the name, Sekbora Alimamy Kargbo and another cheque slip with serial number 1294464 bearing the name Ibrahim .B. Sesay.
He said he then took possession of the exhibits and registered them in the court exhibit book against serial number 26/19.
He told the court that he would like to tender the exhibits in court to form part of the evidence.
Defense counsel, Elvis Kargbo, objected to the witness tendering the exhibits on the grounds that he is a Police officer and not a worker of the bank.
Prosecutor A.S.P Ibrahim Mansaray replied that the rules of tendering documents in court can be in three ways either by the recipients, author or the custodian.
He said the exhibit clerk has the right to tender documents in court because he was the custodian of the said exhibits.
The defense was over ruled by the Magistrate and the cheques were tendered in court as exhibit L1-L6.
The accused persons were arraigned before the court on fifteen counts ranging from conspiracy to defraud, forgery, uttering forged document, demanding goods on forged documents, obtaining goods on forged document, obtaining credit by fraud, issuing cheque against insufficient funds and attempted larceny.
The witness was cross examined by defense counsel and the matter was adjourned to the 2nd December, 2019.
The charge also continued that the accused person on 17th July 2019 at Dambala Road, Bo City issued Zenith Bank cheque with serial number 1290163 dated 22nd July 2019 with face value of twenty-two million Leones (Le 22,000,000) to Deepak Valacha, branch Manager of Pee Cee and Sons for payment in respect of assorted plastic household materials, knowing same to be false.