January 18, 2017 By Victoria Naomi Saffa
Presiding Magistrate of the Freetown Ross Road Magistrates’ Court No.2, John Manso Fornah, yesterday discharged one Abubakarr Kamara, who was in court for the offence of sexual penetration, for want of prosecution witness.
The accused person, who was said to be a sand miner, sexually penetrated a child, contrary to Section 19 of the Sexual Offences Act of 2012.
The prosecution had alleged that the accused person on Monday 18th January, 2016 at No. 57 Campbell Street, Wellington in the eastern end part of the city, did engage in an act of sexual penetration with a girl below the age of eighteen years, to wit fourteen years.
After several adjournments, the matter came up yesterday but the victim and her parent were absent in court and police prosecutor, Sergeant Alimamy Conteh, informed the court that he had tried on several occasions to reach them, but to no avail.
He applied for the court to punish the parent for failing to produce the victim in court.
In his wisdom, Magistrate John Manso Fornah discharged the accused person for want of prosecution witness pursuant to Section 94 of the Criminal Procedure Act of 1965.