By Janet A. Sesay
Musa Konosu, former staff of Sky Bank Sierra Leone Limited on Wednesday, 23rd July, 2025 made another appearance before Magistrate Mustapha Briama Jah of Pademba Road Court No.1 for allegedly defrauding the bank over One Hundred Thousand New Leones (NLe 100, 000) being payments made at their National Revenue Authority Customs Service Department at the Queen Elizabeth II Quay.
In his testimony, a witness, Baimba Sesay, who had identified himself as an Auditor at the Sky Bank described some of his duties to include the execution of audit plans of the bank and to also report cases of fraud. He went on to identify the accused person as a former staff of Sky Bank and he was working as a Teller at quay.
He recalled Monday, 27th January, 2025, that on the said day, the bank received a letter of complaint from Wadi Aboud and Sons that they paid custom duty to the accused at their poll at the quay but the receipt was not seen in the NRA system. The letter of complaint was tendered before the Court to form part of the Prosecution’s case.
The witness furthered that based on the complaint they immediately called the accused for internal investigation in order to determine the veracity of the allegation and that the bank immediately removed the accused from the poll to ensure a transparent investigation.
He said the bank wrote a letter to National Revenue Authority (NRA) twice to properly cross-check the allegation but that they never responded to them. He said the letters to the NRA were done on 13th May and 10th June 2025 respectively. Both letters were also tendered before the Court to also form part of the Prosecution’s case. He explained that the NRA at some point requested that they present the accused to them, which he said they did.
He said at NRA office, they met with the Finance Officer and other people, and that the accused was interrogated and later arrested and was taken to the Criminal Investigation Department Headquarters in Freetown. He said he later made statements to the police.
The witness from the Sky Bank was crossed-examined by Defense Counsel, Julius Cole and during cross-examination; the witness noted that the letter written to them by Wadi Aboud bore the name Rokel Bank but that there was a receipt of payment attached to the letter carrying the name of Sky Bank and admitted that Sky Bank is different from Rokel Bank.
The accused Musa Konosu was before the Court on two count charges of conspiracy to defraud contrary to law and embezzlement contrary to Section 17(1) (b) of the Larceny Act of 1916.
The charge sheet indicates that Musa Konosu, on Monday, 27th January, 2025 at the National Revenue Authority Customs Service Department at the Queen Elizabeth 11 Quay at Cline Town in Freetown, conspired with other persons and defrauded Sky Bank Sierra Leone Limited the sum of One Hundred and Fifty-three Thousand, Five Hundred and Fifty-two New Leones and Fifty-eighty Cents (NLe 153,552.58).
The charge sheet further indicates that the accused, on the same day and place, fraudulently embezzled the said money being payment made by Simeon Kallen of Wadi Aboud and Sons Limited on account of Sky Bank Sierra Leone Limited.
The accused is on bail and the matter comes up on the 31st July, 2025 for continuation.