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The Judiciary of Sierra Leone has announced that Justice Mohamed Momoh Jah-Stevens of the Court of Appeal has been sent on administrative leave effective immediately.
The decision, made by the Honourable Chief Justice of the Republic of Sierra Leone, comes in response to recent media publications concerning Justice Jah-Stevens that the Judiciary stated have “the tendency to adversely affect the reputation of the Judiciary.”
In addition to the immediate administrative leave, the matter has been referred to the Judicial and Legal Service Commission (JLSC) for its consideration. The JLSC will determine any further actions it deems appropriate.
The announcement comes as Justice Jah-Stevens is embroiled in a high-profile legal saga. The judge is the complainant in an active case where his former romantic partner and the mother of his child, 21-year-old law student Edwina Hawa Jamiru, faces charges under the Domestic Violence Act of 2007.
Jamiru is charged with three counts of physical abuse and intimidation, stemming from alleged acts that reportedly occurred on August 27, 2025, in Freetown.
The case gained wider public attention after Jamiru failed to appear in court on September 25, prompting Magistrate Mamakoh Saio Kallon to issue a bench warrant for her arrest.
Following the warrant, Jamiru released a video statement directly challenging the judge. She claimed her court absence was not willful, but a result of Justice Jah-Stevens allegedly preventing her from attending the proceedings.
Jamiru then escalated her allegations against the senior judge, labeling him a “deadbeat father” who refuses to provide adequate financial or emotional support for their baby, despite his judicial position. She accused the judge of having “consistently withheld assistance” and actively attempting to obstruct her efforts to seek justice through the court system.
The legal action filed by the judge is the latest development in a saga that began in late 2024. At that time, Jamiru first circulated a video claiming she had been in a long-term romantic relationship with the judge, became pregnant by him, and was subsequently abandoned.
In the earlier video, Jamiru alleged they were “lovers, boyfriend and girlfriend, and we had been together for years,” only for the judge to later claim he “never loved me and only used me to satisfy his sexual desires.”
The combination of the domestic violence charges, the public counter-allegations, and the resulting arrest warrant led to significant online discussion, ultimately prompting the Chief Justice to send Justice Jah-Stevens on administrative leave while the JLSC investigates.
