By Alimatu Jalloh
Joseph Fitzgerald Kamara, the defence counsel in the ongoing trial of Mayor Aki-Sawyerr has on Friday 4th November, 2022 objected to the tendering of findings and observations contained in a witness report which had been reduced into writing.
He noted that certain paragraphs in the said report are highly prejudicial and will not provide evidence which will assist the court to ascertain whether the accused is guilty or not.
Mayor Aki-Sawyer was arraigned on two counts; Obstruction of Police Duty and Disorderly Behaviour.
According to the police, the Mayor on Saturday 17th September 2022, at the Airport Police Division in Lungi, Kaffu Bullom Chiefdom, Port Loko District, obstructed Detective Sergeant 7966, Richard Junior Caulker and Corporal 12225 Fanta Fofanah while the two had been executing their lawful duties.
State Prosecutor, Yusuf Isaac Sesay led the witness Mohamed Jusu, a police officer attached to the Cyber Crime Unit at the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) headquarters in Freetown to present the said video.
Jusu told the court that his role at the unit is to analyze electronic evidence and reduce his analysis into written reports. He recalled that on the 8th of October 2022, he was on duty at the Cyber Lab when he received a correspondence and a flash drive from Detective Sergeant Kanu for analysis.
He told the Court that he inserted the drive into the cyber lab and discovered that it contained a video. The said video was played in court and it showed the accused person (Aki-Sawyerr) and two others. He added that using software called Harsh-E, he verified that the video was authentic. He added that he also used another software called Voice Analyzer and verified that the voice in the video had not been tampered with.
Jusu disclosed that after playing the video several times, he reduced his observation and conclusion to a report which he signed on the 11th of October 2022 together with his colleague.
The findings and observations which he reduced into writing were identified in court. However the said report was about to be tendered when defence counsel Joseph Fitgerald Kamara objected on the grounds that they were not in line with the rules that prohibit the admissibility of tendering a document.
He said the witness was incapable of tendering the said document because he was not the author and that the court should rely on procedure and law.
At this juncture the matter was adjourned to the 14th of November, 2022 again for ruling on whether the said report should be tendered.
Prior to the witness’ evidence the said video was played again in court after Magistrate Mark Ngegba last overruled defense lawyer Joseph Fitzgerald Kamara’s objection over tendering of the said video.