By Audrey Raymonda John
In a deeply emotional testimony before Justice Alfred T. Ganda at High Court No. 2 in Freetown on Wednesday, July 9, 2025, Christiana Kumba Kamara, the younger sister of the late Sia Fatu Kamara, described the relationship between her sister and the accused, Abdul Kpaka, as consistently abusive.
Kamara, who testified as the first prosecution witness, said the accused frequently used abusive language and physically assaulted her sister whenever they had misunderstandings.
Led in evidence by Lead State Prosecutor Yusuf Isaac Sesay, Kamara confirmed that the deceased and the accused were in a romantic relationship. She told the court that on the night of August 12, 2024, she entered her sister’s room, but the deceased was taking a bath, so she sat on the bed to wait.
When her sister came out, she asked Kamara to plait her hair. During that time, the deceased showed her a flight ticket indicating she would be traveling to the USA on September 3, 2024, for a business trip.
Later that evening, around 11:00 PM, Kamara saw the deceased leaving, saying she was going to the accused’s house. Kpaka had come to pick her up. Kamara remained in her sister’s room and slept there for the night.
On August 13, 2024, at exactly 9:30 AM, Kamara testified that she received a phone call from the accused, urging her to immediately meet him at Emergency Hospital.
At this point in her testimony, Kamara broke down in tears, forcing the court to pause proceedings for over 30 minutes. Observers noted that the more she looked at the accused, the more emotional she became. She continued crying for seven to nine minutes on the witness stand until the prosecutor requested the court provide a counselor for her support.
Lead Defense Counsel, Teddy Koroma, objected to the level of emotion shown by the witness, questioning why she had not appeared as emotional in a previous testimony given before another judge on the same case. The prosecutor countered that the emotional weight had now become more real to the witness as she was reliving the events and had accepted her sister’s death.
Resuming her testimony, Kamara said she arrived at the hospital at 9:40 AM, where she met a plainclothes male nurse who confirmed her identity as the deceased’s sister. When she asked about Sia, the nurse replied, “The doctors are inside trying to bring your sister back to life.”
Kamara said she then saw the accused and attempted to approach him, but others around him tried to stop her. When she finally got close, he said in Krio:
“Christo, una kill me wantem. Ar no deserve for live.”
(Translation: “Christo, you all should kill me now. I don’t deserve to live.”)
The accused repeated the statement twice, according to Kamara. She asked him what had happened, but he was unable to respond.
Kamara said she then called other relatives and their pastor to come to the hospital. Among them was Ruth Finnah Jawara. They began praying for the deceased to revive, joined by the accused’s sister, Nancy.
Eventually, the nurses told the family they could not see the body until a vehicle arrived to release the corpse. When the accused’s sister drove into the compound in the accused’s vehicle, the body was brought out, completely wrapped in white cloth.
Their pastor unwrapped the deceased’s head and suggested they take the body home to pray for a miracle. Kamara said she and Jawara hired a tricycle, and the deceased was transported to their house.
At home, the body was placed in the parlour, where Kamara observed visible injuries: A cut on the upper lip, blood stains on the lower lip.
“We were sitting in the parlour waiting for a miracle to happen,” Kamara said, breaking into tears once again.
Unable to continue further, her testimony was suspended, and the case was adjourned to Wednesday, July 16, 2025, for continuation.
The accused, Abdul Kpaka, is facing two charges: Murder Perverting the Course of Justice
The trial continues as the court hears more evidence regarding the tragic death of Sia Fatu Kamara.