By Alusine Sesay
A class three pupil Khadija Jalloh, 8, passed away on Friday, November 8, 2024, after being allegedly sexually abused by her teacher in Freetown, the education authority said in an incident report Friday.
According to hospital sources, the eight-year-old victim complained of stomach pain and was then taken to hospital. Following a medical examination, she was referred to the Rainbo Centre where it was established that she had been sexually abused. Hospital sources say the girl named the teacher before she passed away.
The suspect, James Mohamed Kamara was arrested by police at the school campus, and he is helping with the investigation.
Tragically, on November 8, 2024, the school authorities received a report that Khadija Jalloh had died. “The cause of her death has not been disclosed at this time, and further investigations are expected to determine the circumstances surrounding it,” an official from the Education Ministry said in the incident report.
Authorities are gathering evidence and testimonies related to the incident and the circumstances surrounding the death of Khadija Jalloh.
This incident has raised significant concerns within the school community and beyond, highlighting the urgent need for measures to protect students and ensure their safety within educational environments.
Sierra Leone declared a national emergency over sexual and gender-based violence in February 2019, after recorded cases of rape and assault doubled.
President Bio noted that attacks on minors – which account for a third of all cases – would be punished with a life sentence. “With immediate effect, sexual penetration of minors is punishable by life imprisonment,” he said.
A dedicated court had been set up to fast-track cases.
Out of 12,314 criminal cases, 3,252 were sexual penetration of minors, representing 26.4% of the total criminal activity reported in 2019 in Sierra Leone, according to the Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone (HRCSL) annual report. This means that one out of every four criminal cases in Sierra Leone in 2019 was sexual penetration of a minor. Western Area accounted for 39.94% of all cases of sexual penetration in 2019.