By Hassanatu I. Conteh
Magistrate Mark Ngegba of Freetown Magistrate Court No.1 has remanded Alpha Kamara, a former police officer on Wednesday 20th September 2023 for allegedly murdering Abu Bakarr Mumu. The accused made his first appearance in court with for the aforesaid offence contrary to law.
According to the particulars of offence, it was alleged that the accused on 14th August, 2023, at Kissy Town in the Waterloo judicial district murdered Abu Bakarr Munu.
Accused took no plea when the charge was read to him. The first prosecution witness, Alfred Ibrahim Conteh began his testimony yesterday. Led in evidence by Assistant Superintendent of Police, Ibrahim Mansaray said he knew the accused and the deceased in the matter.
He further recalled Monday 14 August 2023 adding that he was at his business place at Waterloo in the morning hours when the accused came to complain the deceased to him in respect of a gold chain.
The witness said while the accused was talking, the deceased was outside but said he left later.
“I then called the deceased and explained to him what the accused had complained him to me in respect of the said chain, but in reply, he said he would only give the accused the chain after he paid him his Le240, 000,” the witness explained.
The witness said the following day, the accused came to his shop and told him what the deceased had said and he left.
“After closing my business centre and on my way home, I met the accused and the deceased fighting, I then went there and tried to stop the fight, but they could not listen, I then called for help because the accused was with his friends,” he said.
According to the witness, some people came to the scene and tried to stop the fight, but they could not, adding that while the fight was ongoing, one of the accused’s friends who was in a police uniform, he said, was taking video of the scene.
The accused,he said, took out a pepper spray from his pocket and sprayed it on the deceased’s face while holding on to him.
The deceased he said was crying and that they took him to a nearby pharmacy but was closed while the accused was still fighting the deceased, but when the accused noticed that the deceased could not breathe properly, he stopped the fight and tried to flee, but the witness held him in order not to flee.
“I asked for help from some neighbours who came to the scene and held on to the accused while I went to the Kissy Town police post to report the incidents,” he stated.
He said two police officers followed him to the scene and took them to the station. While at the station, he said, the deceased was taken to a hospital in Waterloo where he was confirmed dead by a doctor.
He also testified that he went back to the police station together with the remains of the deceased where he made statements and the accused was arrested.
During cross-examination by Counsel Hindolo Gevao, the witness said on the day of the incident, the accused were physically holding onto each other when he sprayed pepper on the deceased’s face.
When he was asked about whether he was there when the fight erupted between the accused and the deceased, the witness replied in the affirmative, adding that the deceased was heftier than the accused.
Witness also told the court that there were seven people during the fighting but said only two were with the accused while the others were stopping people from separating from the fight.
When he was asked as to where was the deceased when the police came, the witness said he was in the pharmacy, adding that the deceased was taken to the police station in his car and before the pepper spray was poured on the deceased, they were physically fighting.
At this juncture, the prosecutor requested an adjournment to call his second witness. Magistrate Ngegba remanded the accused in prison and the matter comes up on 28th September.