By Audrey Raymonda John
Two land surveyors, 39-year-old Ahmed Mansaray and 33-year-old Maligie Kanu, have made their first appearance before Magistrate Augustine Brima Samura at Pademba Road Court No. 8 on seven criminal counts, including conspiracy to commit a crime, forgery, and uttering forged documents all contrary to the Forgery Act of 1913.
The accused were arraigned on allegations of conspiring to forge multiple National Revenue Authority (NRA) survey bill receipts and subsequently presenting the forged documents as genuine to the Ministry of Lands, Housing, and Country Planning (MLHCP).
According to court documents, between June 10 and June 12, 2025, at the Youyi Building, Brookfields in Freetown, the accused allegedly conspired with others unknown to commit forgery.
Count Two of the charge states that on June 12, 2025, the accused, with intent to defraud, forged an NRA survey bill receipt bearing plan and LS Number NA 35205, indicating a fake payment of Le53 purportedly made by one Isatu Isha Dumbuya.
Counts Three and Four detail similar acts involving forged receipts bearing LS Numbers NA 34125 and NA 32201, all allegedly bearing the same name and payment details.
Counts Five to Seven state that on the same date and location, the accused knowingly and fraudulently uttered the forged receipts at the Ministry of Lands, presenting them as genuine.
The prosecution, led by Assistant Commissioner of Police Joan M. S. Bull and Detective Police Constable Joseph Lamin Dumbuya, called Isatu Isha Dumbuya as their third witness. She works as a secretary for private land plans and is responsible for receiving plans from licensed surveyors, scanning them, assigning OTP (One-Time Password) numbers, and forwarding them for NRA payment processing.
In her testimony, Dumbuya explained that she received a call between June 10 and 12 from PW1, who questioned her about NRA receipts bearing her name. After reviewing the documents, she confirmed that the OTP numbers and names did not match records she had generated. Upon verification using her phone, she determined that the OTP numbers on the receipts had not been issued by her and were incorrectly placed on the documents.
She further testified that when she input one of the OTP numbers, it returned no results, indicating that the document was invalid. Another OTP number returned the name Musa Daboh, yet the receipt bore the name Matilda Kozia Coker—another inconsistency. Dumbuya presented a sample of a genuine receipt she had processed, which was produced and tendered as evidence in court.
The fourth prosecution witness, Detective Police Constable Brima Koroma of the CID Anti-Fraud Unit, testified that on July 1, 2025, a case of forgery was transferred to his unit for investigation. He confirmed that the inquiry file included voluntary caution statements from both accused, as well as the three forged NRA receipts, which have been in his custody since. These documents were also produced and tendered in court.
Koroma noted that a laptop (Redmi brand) believed to have been used in producing the forged receipts was submitted to the CID Cyber Unit for forensic analysis. A formal request and associated documents, including copies of the receipts, were submitted to the NRA for verification. He stated that on July 5, he and another officer formally charged the accused in Krio, and their statements were recorded in English, read aloud, and confirmed with thumbprints.
He also confirmed that the CID received a written response from the NRA on July 8, which was presented for identification in court.
Both witnesses were cross-examined by defense counsel C. Campbell. Given the seriousness of the charges, Magistrate Samura denied bail and ordered that both accused be remanded at the Male Correctional Centre in Freetown.
The matter was adjourned to July 23, 2025.