A 30-year-old civil servant, Peter Brima, on Thursday, 9 July 2026, made another appearance before Magistrate John Manso Fornah at Pademba Road Magistrate Court No. 2 in Freetown on one count of larceny in a dwelling house, contrary to Section 13(a) of the Larceny Act of 1916.

According to the particulars of offence, the accused allegedly committed the offence between Saturday, 28 February and Sunday, 1 March 2026, at No. 9 Charlotte Village, Freetown, where he is accused of stealing US$5,210, equivalent to NLe124,000, property of Lovetta Kamara.

When the charge was read and explained to the accused, no plea was taken because the matter is before the court on committal proceedings.

Led in evidence by Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Sorie Conteh, the fourth prosecution witness, DPC 13878 Paul Blango, attached to the Breaking and Larceny Unit of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Pademba Road, testified that he recognised both the complainant and the accused.

Related News

The witness recalled that on 10 March 2026, while on duty at the CID, a case of larceny in a dwelling house involving US$5,210 was reported by the complainant and assigned to him for investigation.

He said he obtained statements from the complainant and her witnesses. The complainant’s statement, which had remained in police custody, was produced and tendered in court to form part of the court records.

Blango further testified that on the same day, he, together with Sergeant 10400 Turay K. and the complainant, visited the crime scene, where they observed that there was no sign of forced entry.

He said that on 11 March 2026, the accused was transferred from the OSD Headquarters to the CID for investigation. Between 11 and 14 March 2026, investigators obtained a voluntary caution statement from the accused. According to the witness, the accused was cautioned and questioned in Krio, while his statement was recorded in English.

After it was read back to him, the accused confirmed it to be true and correct by affixing his right thumbprint. The investigator signed as the recorder, and the statement was produced and tendered in evidence.

During the course of the investigation, the witness said the accused disclosed that he had deposited NLe10,000 into a UBA Bank account. Police were later able to retrieve NLe8,400 from the account. He added that one grey Infinix mobile phone, one black Samsung manual phone, and a UBA ATM card were recovered from the accused and are currently in police custody with the exhibit officer.

The witness further informed the court that a photocopy of the case and inquiry file was forwarded to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for legal advice. The file was later returned with advice directing the police to charge the accused with larceny in a dwelling house.

He said that on 27 March 2026, he and the investigating officer formally charged the accused using the same procedure adopted when obtaining the voluntary caution statement. The charge statement was produced and tendered in court as part of the prosecution’s evidence, after which the witness concluded his testimony.

Magistrate John Manso Fornah refused bail, citing the seriousness of the offence. The matter was adjourned to 16 July 2026 for further hearing.