Emmanuel Teddy Koroma Esq has said in his no case submission in the continuing alleged murder trial of the Providence International High School teacher, the late Gillis Edward Ola Johnson, that the accused person a former pupil Mohamed Haroun Conteh, has no case to answer. Lawyer Koroma made the submission before Magistrate Mark Ngegba of the Pademba Road Court No1, Freetown.
The accused Mohamed Haroun Conteh is arraigned on preliminary investigation on a count of murder contrary to law.
According to the charge, the accused Conteh on Saturday 11th March 2023 at Victoria Street in Freetown allegedly murdered the late Gillis Edward Ola Johnson.
Defence in murder trial of Mohamed Harun Conteh makes no case submission Emmanuel Teddy Koroma said the burden is essential that the prosecutor proved that the said killing took place and with malice which according to him, the prosecution failed to establish a case against the accused even though it was established that someone died and that a killing took place but didn’t show who committed the said act of killing. Thus therefore he said the 17 year old Mohamed Haroun Conteh has no case to answer. None of the witnesses he said ever testified that they saw the person who committed the offense.
The prosecution he said is relying on circumstantial evidence such which he further submitted is before the court. The facts before the court he said are very remote to be committed to the High Court as it will be waste of resources to further sit on such a case.
The Prosecutor Umu Suma Ray in reply said the prosecution met all the elements. From the inception of the case, she said she had intimated the court that all the evidence she had are circumstantial referencing the case if Baimba Foray alias LAC in 2016.
The case before the court she said is like a twisted bow wherein everything points to the accused. She said she had established from the start of the matter that the accused at the time of the incident was resident in Sierra Leone and the act committed with a year and a day.
Malice aforethought she submitted does not necessarily mean someone is required not to like another. She tied that with the cause of death report by the Pathologist which said…hence an indication of malice aforethought.
Throughout the trial, she said none of the 9 prosecution witnesses except the accused in his statement to the police in which he mentioned that the teacher was stabbed multiple times before he could make his way to safety. All of the witnesses she said pointed at the accused as the only person who was seen at the residence of the deceased on that day. No evidence she said has ever been in court that the four attackers claimed by the accused were ever seen around the vicinity of the deceased 68 year old teacher.
She pointed out that there are inconsistencies in the story of the accused she termed as preposterous when the Harun told the police that he was attacked by four men and murdered his teacher. “If his story doesn’t make sense, then it’s not true” Madam Suma Ray concluded.
The matter was however committed to the High Court for trial as Magistrate Mark Ngegba said there is sufficient circumstantial evidence with elements of facts to be proven by a jury at the High Court.
