By Janet A. Sesay
Hawanatu Hawa Koroma who is on pre-trial at the Magistrate on charges of pouring fuel over her husband and setting him alight was on Tuesday, 28th January, 2024 again remanded in custody by Magistrate Santigie Bangura of the Pademba Road Court No.2.
Hawanatu Hawa Koroma is being arraigned before the court on a count charge of murder contrary to Section 1 of the Offences against the Person’s Act of 1816 as repealed and replaced by Section (1a) of the Schedule of the Abolition of the Death Penalty Act of 2021 Act No.6 of 2022.
The charge sheet indicates that the accused, on Friday, 22nd November, 2024 at the back of Leicester Peak Junction in Freetown, murdered Nabieu Bangura.
In his testimony, the Fourth Prosecution Witness, Detective Sergeant 10601 John Ansumana McCarthy, attached to the Criminal Investigation Department at the Hill Top Police Station Mountain Division in Freetown confirmed he knew the complainant in the matter and also recognized the accused in the dock.
The Witness recalled Friday, 22nd November 2024, saying that he was on duty when a case of murder involving one Nabieu Bangura was transferred from the Family Support Unit (FSU) to the CID of the same station and the matter was allocated to him for investigation.
He said attached to the file is a voluntary caution statements obtained from the complainant and party and also the medical report of the deceased when he was admitted at Connaught Hospital.
Witness McCarthy testified that he read through the file and noticed that the incident which resulted to the death of the deceased occurred on Friday, 22nd November, 2024 and that the report stated that it was the accused that set fire on the deceased which led to his death.
He added that on Friday, 24th November, 2024 a request for postmortem examination was made by him and sent to the Chief Medical Examiner, Dr. Someone Owizz Koroma for the examination to be done on the remains of the deceased.
He tendered the copy of the postmortem examination to the court to form part of the Prosecution’s case.
The witness furthered that on Monday, 25th November 2024 at the Connaught Mortuary, Dr. Owizz Koroma conducted a postmortem examination on the remains of the deceased in his presence of relatives of the deceased.
He said at the end of the postmortem examination, a death certificate was issued to the police and the original was handed over to the relatives to facilitate the proper burial of the deceased.
The witness went on that on Tuesday, 26th November 2024, he and Police Constable 21552 Samba G obtained voluntary caution statements from the accused in respect of the allegations in accordance with the Judges Rules.
The voluntary caution statement of the accused was tendered before the court to form part of the Prosecution’s case.
The police witness furthered that on 17th December 2024, he charged the accused with the offense of murder also in accordance with the Judges Rules and the charge sheet was also tendered to the court and marked Exhibit E1-3.
The matter was adjourned to Wednesday, 29th January, 2025 for cross-examination of the police witness.