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On Wednesday 18th May 2022, the attention of the President of the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ), Ahmed Sahid Nasralla, was drawn to a robbery at the Association’s national headquarters at 56 Campbell Street, Freetown.
In response, the President immediately instructed the Acting Secretary General to inform the Police at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for necessary action.
The SLAJ Acting Secretary General went with the Office Assistant to the CID where a crime officer was assigned to visit the scene together with the Scene of Crime Officer (SOCO). The SOCO took photographs of the scene, and some basic information.
The Acting Secretary General was asked to accompany the Office Assistant to the CID on Friday 20th May 2022 for a questioning session and formal statements to be obtained.
“Although, the offices were ransacked with documents scattered all over the place, the general membership is assured that confidential and other important documents are intact,” SLAJ stated.
“We are presently taking stock of everything to know exactly what was taken away or the items that are missing.”
Beyond police investigation the President has initiated the following steps:
i) Instructed the Secretariat to call in a welder to strengthen all windows at the SLAJ office.
ii) Started discussion with co-tenants to pool resources to hire official security for the entire building.
iii) In talks with the SLP, through our two new members serving in the Police Media, about the possibility of assigning armed security to the SLAJ Headquarters during the night.
iv) Instructed the Secretariat to work out modalities for the installation of CCTV cameras at the SLAJ Headquarters.
v) Instructed the SLP to also thoroughly investigate the Office Assistant at SLAJ HQ in relation to the latest robbery, and for missing office equipment prior to now.
‘Meanwhile, we will continue to work with SLP for a speedy investigation of the incident and keep you informed,” the association noted.
