Native Police Officer and Chief Accused of Assaulting Suckling Mother and Infant in Bombali

A suckling mother and her one-year-old son have been allegedly assaulted in Mara Chiefdom, Bombali District, Northern Sierra Leone.

Zainab Sesay and the boy were reportedly assaulted by a native police officer and Section Chief of Mara on March 28th, 2025, prompting the Sierra Leone Police Force to launch an investigation.

“The Section Chief, James Fullah, ordered the Chiefdom Police Officer to drag me while in handcuffs, and I was publicly disgraced in the eyes of the public,” Zainab Sesay said.

The Mena Police Station in the Northern city of Makeni is investigating the matter. Police medical report forms have been issued to the mother and her baby, and they have been endorsed by the medical superintendent of the Makeni Regional Hospital as part of the investigation.

Sesay said she had an altercation with a relative some days ago, and they were asked to pay a fine by the authorities after they all used public insults.

On the day of the alleged incident, the mother said, the Section Chief ordered Umaro Jalloh, the police officer, to handcuff her until she paid the fine. While in the process of paying the fine, she reported that the Section Chief ordered her detention at the Chiefdom cell in Mara town.

While pleading to the authorities to remain patient, she said the officer under the command of the Section Chief dragged her with her child while in handcuffs.

Even when they were advised to take the matter to the Chiefdom Local Court as required by law, the Section Chief insisted and ordered the officer to detain the mother and her son, according to the victim and eyewitnesses.

“I sustained injuries and wounds after the assault against me and my baby,” the mother said.

Meanwhile, the Mena Police Station says it has invited three people – the Section Chief, the police officer, and the Chiefdom Youth Chairman – and they’re to report at the police station on Tuesday 1st April 2025.

There has been called for a swift and impartial investigation, especially when one of the victims is a one-year-old baby.

Report says the mother was later forced to pay two hundred and fifty leones even after she was assaulted.

Authorities in Mara Chiefdom are on record for violating the human rights and dignity of their subjects. A few years ago, a man was stripped naked and publicly beaten under the command of the same Section Chief for allegedly stealing a goat, an allegation they later proved to be false. Hundreds of Mara residents have become victims, and those matters are left to die a natural death.

The mother said she’s calling civil rights activists to intervene for justice to be served.