By Chernor Alimamy Kamara
The parents of the late Namisa Fatmata Kamara have pleaded for justice for their daughter whose body was discovered buried in a shallow grave in a compound at Sumaila town in Freetown.
The body of the 22-year-old IPAM student was discovered on 9 August 2022, eight days after she had disappeared, and up to now nobody has been charged.
According to the mother of the deceased, Mariama Kargbo, who resides at Sumaila Town at the back of the Winners Chapel, a neighbour Patricia Bobani-Browne requested for Namisa to be helping them with house chores and be spending the night in their house since her own daughter, Sonia Bobani-Browne was busy and traveled regularly.
She said Patricia assured her and her husband, Peter Foday Kamara, that she would hire a guard to man the house at night.
Speaking in-between sobs and with her husband intermittently interjecting, she recalled that at midday on the 1st of August 2022, her daughter whom she said was chaste; told her that she was very tired after spending the night doing her assignment. She said she was going to the Bobani-Browne’s house to do some chores and rest.
At about 6pm, she went on, Patricia called her and complained that she had met her gate wide open and that she had called Namisa without success, but that her slippers, earphones and phone charger were all visible and the TV was on. She said they searched the house but couldn’t find her.
The deceased’s parents reported the matter to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) the following morning – 2 August 2022 – where statements were obtained from them.
The mother of the deceased pointed out that on the 9 August 2022, Patricia’s salesgirl, Massa, explained to the CID officers that a corpse had been discovered in a shallow grave in the Bobani-Browne’s compound, her last known whereabouts.
It so happened that some boys were playing football in the neighbourhood and their ball went over the fence into the compound. They knocked on the gate to go get their ball back and discovered Namisa’s body lying face down just near where the round object had landed.
According to her, the salesgirl also explained that Patricia had declined to give the ball to the boys after it was inadvertently kicked into the compound.
Patricia Bobani-Browne and her daughter were briefly detained by the police. And since their release nobody has been arrested or charged with Namisa’s death. They deny any wrongdoing.
Kargbo went on to say that, at a time her husband went to the CID, he met the suspects released on bail citing further investigations.
The head of CID, RPG Roberts said they had concluded their investigations and sent the file to the office of the Director of Public Prosecution.
Politico contacted the DPP, Easmon Ngakui, who said that he had advised the police to provide more evidence including the telephone details of the deceased and her boyfriend. Politico was shown a copy of the memo, dated 17 August 2022. The police were yet to respond to it.
Copyright © 2023 Politico Online (30/01/23)
