By: Audrey Raymonda John
Solomon Robert Villa an Information Technology Director of ECSL attached to the Wellington office Freetown has on Thursday 14th December 2023 discloses that the 142 tablets that were missing was stolen by Mohamed Turay a casual staff and Ishmeal Sesay a security guard attached to their office.
The accused persons Mohamed Turay, Ishmeal Sesay, Charles Francis Yonjai and Sahr Kamanda were arraigned on three counts charges ranging from Conspiracy contrary to law, Store breaking and larceny contrary to section 26(1) of the larceny Act 1916 and receiving stolen goods.
According to the indictments, the accused persons Mohamed Turay, Ishmeal Sesay and Charles Francis Yonjai on the 12th September 2023, at ECSL office Wellington branch Freetown conspired together with other person’s unknown to commit a felony to wit store breaking and larceny.
The police further alleged on count two that the accused persons on the same date and place with intent to steal break and entered into the store of ECSL office and stole 142 tablets valued four million one hundred and ten Kenya shillings (ksh 4,110,00) equivalent to millions of Leones property of ECSL.
Whiles counts three added that the fourth accused Sahr Kamanda on a date unknown in September 2023, at PMB Wellington Freetown did receive 11 ECSL tables valued (ksh318,538) equivalent to hundreds of thousand new Leones from Mohamed Turay knowing same to have been stolen.
First prosecution witness (PW1) Solomon Robert Villa Led in evidence by ASP Ibrahim S Mansaray said he is an Assistance IT Director ECSL attached to the Wellington office Freetown.
He said he knew the first accused Mohamed Turay as casual staff attached to their office and the second as a security guard of Pendrax Security Company attached to their office.
The witness said on the 12th September 2023, between the hours of 12.09 hrs., to 12.27 pm, the CCTV camera footage recordings kept in the ICT store at Wellington revealed the faces of Mohamed Turay and Ishmeal Sesay taking the Taifa Tablet from the store through the window of the store building.
He said the matter was reported to CID whiles first and second accused were arrested and brought to the CID for further investigation.
According to the witness, the Tablet at the store were more than 2, 000 and out of that 142 Taifa Tablet were missing, based on what he knows, one table is valued US 106 dollars.
The witness said the third and fourth accused persons were later arrest and brought to CID.
He said after the discovery he spoke to the first accused who denied the allegation at first but later pleaded for mercy.
At the CID HQ Pademba Road, the witness said the first and second accused told them that the third was not part of the theft, adding that the police later went to the scene and took photographs of the empty cartoons where the tablets were kept.
When he was asked as to whether he would like the CCTV footage to the played in court, he replied in the affirmative.
During Cross examination by lawyer Chernor Kamara for the first and second accused, he said the first is the sons of one of their oldest staff and the second is a security guard attached to the ECSL Office Wellington.
He asked the witness whether the first and second accused were arrested on the same day of the incidents, the witness said no.
When he was asked as to whether he could tell the exact number of tablets that were kept in the store, he said he could not but each cartoons containing over 20 tablet and five was empty and when counted it amounted to 142 tablets that were missing.
The CCTV footage he said are with the Police and that it captured both the first and second accused persons.
Lawyer Thullah in his cross examination for the third accused asked the witness whether the CCTV footage captured the third accused person, the witness said he was not captured.
Defense Counsel for the fourth accused asked whether the fourth accused was captured in the footage, the witness said he only came to know him when he was arrested.
He also put it to the witness that he was not there when the fourth accused was arrested, the witness in reply said he was not but was later called at the station when he was arrested.
Bail applications were made by defense counsels for all the accused persons
Magistrate Ngegba however refused bail due to the serious nature of the offense charged and remanded all the accused in prison whiles the matter was adjourned to the 18th December 2023 for further hearing.