By: Audrey Raymonda John
” I don’t know what the next ten years of education will bring to our children. It is very pathetic for a teacher and student who claimed to be attending IPAM not able to speak simple English”, these are the exact words of magistrate Sahr Kekura rendering his dissatisfaction over the way and manner in which James Palmer a complainant who was questioned by defence counsel M. Macfoy answering to questions in court.
James Palmer dragged his niece Fanta Fofanah for redress after she connived with Qnet to defraud him.
The accused Fanta Fofanah is charged with ten counts charges of conspiracy to defraud and obtaining money by false pretences contrary to section 32 of the Larceny Act of 1916.
It was alleged on counts one, three, five, seven, and nine that on a date unknown between the 1st of September 2022 and the 28th of February 2023, at Wellington in Freetown, the accused conspired together with other persons unknown to defraud complainants Admire Kamara, James Palmer, Tommy Palmer, Osman Kanu and Doris Palmer.
In counts two, four, six, eight and ten the accused with intent to defraud obtained the sum of thirty-three thousand new Leones from Admire Kamara with the pretext that she will facilitate her travelling to Canada knowing the same to be false, she also obtained the sum of thirty thousand Leones from James Palmer, twenty-nine thousand Leones from Tommy Palmer, thirteen thousand Leones from Doris Palmer and four thousand Leones from Mohamed Turay with the pretext that she will facilities their travelling to Canada Knowing same to be false.
Prosecuted by the chief prosecutor of Ross Road Court No.1, Assistant Superintendent of Police Osman Mohamed Bangura, the accused was refused bail several times.
Shortly after her matter was mentioned, the first complainant James Palmer was cross-examined by defence counsel M. Macfoy who later renewed his application for bail.
Bail was granted to the accused person in the sum of five hundred thousand new Leones with two sureties in like sum. He said one of the sureties should produce a NASSIT ID and should be an elderly person residing in Freetown.
Magistrate Sahr Kekura said their bail should be approved by the Deputy Acting Registrar and adjourned the matter to the 7th of June 2023 for the prosecution to continue.