Sexual penetration accused walks free
April 20, 2017 By Memunatu Bangura
Magistrate Abou Bakarr Binneh-Kamara of Court No.1, on Tuesday discharged one Alusine Kanu, who was charged with the offence of Sexual Penetration of a Child contrary to Section 19 of the Sexual Offences Act No. 12 of 2012.
According to the particulars of offences, Alusine Kanu, on a date between 1st to 29th November, 2016, sexually penetrated a girl under the age of eighteen (18) to wit nine (9) years old.
Delivering his sentence, Magistrate Binneh-Kamara said the accused has been in detention since 27th January, 2017 but that the prosecution has adduced no evidence against him.
He said it was unfair to keep the accused behind bars for over three months without evidence being led against him, thus noting that the accused be discharged for want of prosecution as per Section 94 of the Criminal Procedure Act of 1965.
In another development in the same courtroom, one Mohamed Kugba, testified in the ongoing theft matter at the African Young Voices Media Empire involving Mohamed Kanu – Disk joker , Alieu Vandy and Lamin Kanu –Musicians, Laurence Peters, Mohamed Idrissa Dumbuya, Suliaman Conteh, Aruna Momoh and Saidu Dumbuya–all security personnel attached to the AYV head office, West Street in Freetown.
The men were in court on two count charges of conspiracy and office breaking contrary to the laws of Sierra Leone.
The prosecution alleged in count one that all accused persons on 27th February, 2017, conspired together with unknown persons to commit a crime to wit office breaking .
The prosecution further alleged in count two that the accused persons on the same date at AYV compound broke into and entered the media house and stole certain equipment, properties of the management of AYV Proprietor, Antony Navo Jr.
While testifying before the court, Mohamed Kugba, said he recognised the accused persons, and that during his investigation, he played the Close Circuit Television (CCTV) footage for the first accused (Mohamed Kanu), adding that he observed that the 6th accused visited the first accused at the AYV.
He said the footage also showed the second and third accused persons passed through the reception hall of AYV to visit the first accused in a room, where he was working and later on that same day, the footage showed that the second accused returned to the hall and an adult male was seen half naked moving up the stairs to where the Television was located.
Kugba noted that after watching the footage, the first accused denied knowing the second accused, when initially asked to identify but later admitted knowing him as a visitor, who went for a radio program.
The prosecution presented a Hard Drive to Kugba, which they claimed contained the downloaded footage but the he would not ascertain the content of the Drive until it was played.
The matter was adjourned to 3rd May, 2017 for further hearing.