By Sallieu S. Kanu
Relatives of the late Hassan Dumbuya aka Evangelist Samson, who was slayed by security personnel early August, has demanded that his corpse be handed over to them for befitting burial at his hometown in Makeni.
Evangelist Samson was an ardent critic of the Bio Administration. His video and audio recordings are popular among supporters and sympathisers of the main opposition All Peoples Congress (APC) party.
The incident was said to have occurred in front of a merchandise shop on Station Road in Makeni.
Eyewitness account stated that the security forces took the victim from his pool of blood and went away.
Lansana Dumbuya Esq., the lawyer representing relatives of the deceased, said in letter to the Minister of Internal Affairs on Monday that “I am instructed that on the 11th August 2022, the deceased was murdered (shot dead) by the Sierra Leone Police in Makeni City, Bombali District in the Northern Province of the Republic of Sierra Leone and his remains taken by the Police including properties in his possession (his phones, wrist watch, money in his wallet ete.).”
“I am instructed also that on that faithful day, the deceased was sitting with some of his friends in a private bar in Makeni when the Police arrived and shot only the deceased amongst his friends, although the deceased and his friends were unarmed, he never resisted an arrest by the said Police: was not in a riot insurrection or mutiny; was not violent to the Police; was not committing a criminal offence; and there was at that time no war in the country nor was the deceased killed consequent upon a Court order. Such act by the Sierra Leone Police contravenes section 16 (1) of the 1991 Constitution.”
The Sierra Leone Police said in a statement that Evangelist Samson was killed during a crossfire while security forces were pursuing ex-combatants who had assembled to organize attacks.
Dumbuya Esq. said that since the killing of Evangelist Samson, initially the State refused to hand over the said corpse to the family.
“Take Notice that I am instructed to state that the said corpse is neither a public property/a state’s property and the Government has no right within the Laws of Sierra Leone to continue to hold on to the said corpse, and that the relatives demand that the Government makes available the said corpse to them.”
Lawyer Dumbuya said that the family approached the Sierra Leone Police and they had been informed that the corpse would be handed over to them. “I have been informed that your Ministry is now handling the issue, and that you have asked the family to identify the corpse so that it can be handed over to them,” he said.