By: Nicholas Bass
Ousainou Bojang, the accused person for killing two police officials and brutally wounding one, has told the Banjul High Court presided over by Justice Ebrima Jaiteh the statement issued by government spokesperson, Ebrima Sankareh and one Abubacarr Sulayman Jeng was false news about him.
In his testimony on Tuesday, Ousainou told the count that the statement of government spokesperson, Mr. Ebrima Sankarehdescribing him as staff of Brikama Area Council was false, adding that the statement of one Abubacarr Sulayman Jeng saying he is a rebel from Cassamance was false.
He further told the court that Abubacarr Sulayman Jeng falsely stated that he was part of the Cassamance rebels, that he fought for the Cassamance rebellion for so long, and that he came with the gun from Cassamance.
But DPP Yusuf interjected defence lawyer Darboe when he asked his client if he had read Mr. Sankareh’s news, stating that such a question suggested an opinion.
Testifying further, Ousainou stated that he came across the statement of Mr. Sankareh in newspapers that accused him of being a rebel of Cassamance and this was false.
Defense lawyer Lamin S. Darboe after questioning his client on the purported breaking news of Mr. Sankareh and Jeng gave him the publications of Standard Newspaper dated 18 September 2023, Point Newspaper dated 14 and 15 September 2023 and Foroyaa Newspaper dated 15 September 2023 respectively which his client affirmed in court.
At that juncture, defence lawyer Darboe applied for the said newspapers to be tendered and marked as exhibits which was granted by Justice Jaiteh without any objection from the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), AM Yusuf and defencelawyer A Sillah for the second accused, Amie Bojang.
Ousainou, however, denied knowing Mr. Sankareh and one Abubacarr Sulayman Jeng, stating that if the authority of Mile II Central Prison is loyal to the state they should tender the video of the alleged shooter of the PIU officials for the whole world to know who their killer is.
”I want the authority at Mile II to bring the video of the shooter of PIU officials to show the whole world,” Ousainou decried.
In narrating his bitter experience at the Mile remand wing, Ousainou lamented that the state central prison officials placed him in a single-man cell where there was no window, stating that he realised that the prison officers wanted to suffocate him and he had to stand beside the door to breathe. ”I am not from UDP,” he wept.
He also accused one Lamin Cham of seizing his small cell phone, adding that his smart cell phone was also seized by one Ebou Sowe when he was questioned about his seized properties the investigators seized during their investigations.
With grief, defence lawyer Darboe applied for the prosecution to tender his client’s cellophanes in court, stating that he needs them for his client’s defence which DPP Yusuf questioned its importance in the case before he promised to produce them to Ousainou’s lawyer in the next adjourned date.
At the peak of the matter, the defence lawyer reminded the court of an order that was granted for the station Officer of SukutaPolice Station to produce the station’s diary from January 2023 to December 2023, but the said order was not carried by the station officer of Sukuta.
Meanwhile, the presiding judge Justice Jaiteh reinstated that the police should abide by the order of the court, stressing that he station officer of Sukuta Police should appear in court on the next adjournment date as ordered by the court.