Justice Monfred Sesay has told the jury that on Wednesday, October 4th, 2023, he will do his summing up in the trial of Mohamed Johnson, Aiah Komba, Kalilu Fofanah, and Ishmail Charles over the alleged killing of one Osman Fengai in Kono.

The judge informed the jurors that they will retired in order to come with a verdict.

The fourth accused in this case, Victor Kellie, had already jumped bail during the trial.

Earlier, Prosecution Lawyer Aruna Jalloh addressed the jury saying his side tendered 20 exhibits that included the knife that was used to commit the murder, a cause of death certificate, and cautionary statements the accused persons made to the police.

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He said on the morning of 20 April 2021, the deceased was in the vehicle of the First Prosecution Witness, Tamba Senesie, together with Aiah Komba Senesie and one Sahr Boima along Bona Street in Koidu City when the accused aggressively attacked and stood in front of their vehicle.

He said the attack was on political grounds saying that the deceased had betrayed former Vice President, Sam Sumana by giving Kono District to President Julius Maada Bio. Lawyer Jalloh said the deceased alighted from the vehicle and pleaded with the accused to give way to their vehicle but the second accused refused and started using abusive language against the first prosecution witness and Tamba Lamina. He said the first, third, fourth, and fifth accused persons then joined the second accused to insult Tamba Senesie.

The Prosecution lawyer said the first accused then moved to the other side of the street to fetch a knife and then stabbed the deceased who was pronounced dead at the hospital. The accused were then arrested and charged with conspiracy and murder.

The Prosecutor said the cause of death certificate indicated the deceased died because of stab wounds to the chest and left lung. He therefore called on the jury to return a verdict of guilty on both the first and second accused on counts one and two and another guilty verdict for the third accused on conspiracy because he was at the scene.

The Prosecutor urged the jury to return a not guilty verdict for the fifth accused because he told the police that he knew nothing about the incident as he was not at the scene.

Randy Bangura from the Legal Aid Board who defended the accused, called on the jurors to return not guilty for the first and second accused persons because the testimony of the first two prosecution witnesses was inconsistent with the statement the first accused made to the police.

While the first accused admitted that he stabbed the deceased, the second prosecution witness testified that it was the second accused who stabbed the deceased and that the first prosecution witness did not see who stabbed the deceased, but only heard people saying: “he has stabbed him.” Lawyer Bangura told the jury that such contradicting evidence created a doubt as to who did the stabbing.

According to him, the first accused who admitted to stabbing the deceased, said he did the act in self-defence adding that the deceased and his men overpowered him.

He said the deceased and his boys were in a vehicle when they attacked the first accused at his residence at Bona Street where the incident occurred. He said the evidence also revealed that the second accused stabbed the deceased with a knife because he was overpowered by the deceased and his team.