By Fatima Kpaka
Abdul Sorie Hassan Kamara, a police personnel formerly of the Operations Support Division (OSD) of the Sierra Leone Police (SLPP), who is the 12th accused person in the ongoing trial for treason has on Monday 15th July 2024 told the court that he had no pre-knowledge of the November 26th 2023 coup d’état as he was arrested by the assailants on his way to work, and that he was in the company of the assailants because he was forced to be there.
He declared his innocence, before Justice Komba Kamanda and members of the jury when he spoke in his defense at the trials on Monday 15th July 2024.
Led in evidence by Lawyer Ahmed Rahman Gbla, Kamara disclosed that he had known three of the accused persons before the November 26th coup d’état.
He added that he knew the 10th accused, Inspector Tamba Yamba, who served as their Officer in Charge at the SLPP party office when he served there.
He said he also knew the 5th accused, Halimatu Hassan Bangura as the wife of his former boss, and added that he had known her since the 10th of January 2023, when he was deployed at Lumley.
The witness added that he also knows the 11 accused Inspector Kabba Kamara, whom he had met three months before his arrest.
He recalled that on the 26th of November 2023 he was at home, when his boss Alex Mamoud Kamara, the Commanding Officer, of the Operations Support Division (OSD) Lumley Division called him at around 6:00 a. m. and instructed him to report at the office with the nominal role of personnel attached at Lumley Division.
According to him, his boss called him for the second time and informed him that the police station was empty, and that he should go there as quickly as he could.
“I immediately dressed up to work. On my way, I met Chief Superintendent Mohamed Bah, and I enquired from him about the gun shots which I had heard, and he told me that they were from people who do not want peace, and whiles we were going he received a call which made him return home,” he said.
The accused furthered that whiles he was waiting together with his colleagues for a bus, a police officer whom he later knew as Aiah rode him as a pillion on his bike and drop him half way to his destination.
He said that whiles they headed towards Congo Cross, he saw military men and police officers together with some vehicles parked at Main Motor Road, Congo Cross and two of the military officer shot at them causing the rider to lost control and they fell to the ground.
Two of the military officers he said rushed at them seized them at gun point and ordered them to hand over their weapons, but refused and told them that he was on duty and therefore could not hand over his weapon.
He said that at this time two other military officers joined the others and asked whether he wanted to die, or whether he thought the gun was his father’s property, and after they hit him with the gun and dragged him from his back and beat him mercilessly before disarming him.
The accused said he was later forced into a military vehicle, adding that he do not know any of the soldiers who manhandle him.
“I later saw one of my colleague officer Alhaji, with whom I trained together, and Bockarie our driver at Lumley who was saying something to me but my attention was on the soldiers who were holding my weapon that he placed in a green land cruiser,” he lamented.
Kamara further mentioned that the vehicle moved towards Congo cross bridge and later towards APC office where they fired some shot and arrest four other OSD personnel and proceeded to Campbell street and to the Pademba road correctional center. The other vehicle he said stayed at the PWD Junction where argument erupted between them.
He added that he saw two police vehicles heading towards PWD Junction to Pademba road and were stopped by some soldiers which led to exchange of firing between them.
“I was able to identify one of them as Junior Borbor among the officers who came with the police vehicle,” he revealed.
The accused said he managed to call junior Borbor who stood closer to a police vehicle whose tires was later deflated by the military officers, adding that their vehicle later proceeded to the prison gate where all the vehicles were parked.
Whiles they were there, he said an arguments ensued among the assailants, and Bockarie advised him to run for his life, and he adhered to it and ran for his life, but added that he was able to escape with his weapon whiles he was escaping.
He said whiles he was escaping, he met the assailants by the prison gate but managed to escape towards Dwazark Community.
He revealed that the reason why he did not escape at first was because some soldiers were holding a Rocket Propelled Grenade who threatened to kill him if he escaped, but he added that he eventually managed to escape through a bypass road at PWD Junction which he used until he found himself at Benjamin Lane where he met another colleague Fatu Kailley who rescued him.
“I was captured by the CCTV footage at Pademba Road prison because I was under duress,” he claims.
He added that while they stood in front of one school around the area, he saw a police officer named Mr. Kallon who stood in a veranda and they went there for help.
The accused added that while at Mr. Kallon’s place, he requested for Kallon to give him cloth to wear, which he did. He added that immediately he went to the Prison Barracks and reported himself to one Sergeant Major but left his weapon with Mr. Kallon.
He said on the 27th of November 2023, he took his weapon to the arm store, adding that on the 1st December, he was invited by the Local Unit Commander (LUC) to go make statement at OSD headquarters, and he did so on the following day at around 6: 000 p. m.
According to him, he was detained at OSD headquarters and on the 2nd December 2023 transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Headquarters at Pademba Road Freetown where he said his phones were removed from him and detained.
He said that on the 10th of December 2023, statements were obtained from him and subsequently on the 1st of January 2024.
Kamara was asked to read page 3 of his statement marked as exhibits X 1 to 16 where he denied the allegation made against him.
“I had no knowledge of the alleged coup, I was only captured by the assailants on my way to work,” he concluded.