Police Hunt Suspect Corpse at Ahmadiyya Muslim Secondary School

Tension mounted in the late afternoon hours of Thursday June 7 at Ferry Junction following suspicion by the police that a suspect corpse was taken to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Secondary School, Kissy Dockyard, for courtesy prayers.

In a telephone interview with the Principal of Ahmadiyya Muslim Secondary School, Abdul Karim Sesay, he said the remains of late Ismail Kamara, an SSS1 Art (1) pupil were brought for courtesy prayers and  later taken to the Columbia Davies funeral home to be placed in the morgue to arrange a befitting burial for him later on.

The pupil was the victim of a police shootout incidence in Wellington’s Taylor Street where it is alleged that a group of community vigilantes came in conflict with the police some two days ago.

The Principal said as part of their school’s culture they usually pay homage as the last funeral rites to one of their own. He said he joined the congregation in saying the prayers and shared a few words of counseling with his pupils before the remains of Ishmael were taken out of campus. Few minutes later, he said, two Operational Support Delta police visited the scene in respect of the suspect corpse but missed the timing as relatives of the late Ismail had left for the funeral home. Later, he said, a few shots of fire arms were heard and the police had barricaded the Ferry Junction in combat for the body.

In a phone conversation with the Chairman of Police Media, ASP Samura, he told Sierra Express Media that it would be unfair on the side of the police for him to disclose the cause of their investigation as at going to press.

The police were prompt in quelling the situation which had caused mixed reaction in the evening rush hour in that part of eastern Freetown.

Our reporters Emma Black and Mohamed Kabbah Turay were in the thick of it all yesterday evening, monitoring the situation. They told Sierra Express news desk that the police had barricaded the Up-Gun Roundabout area in the east of the capital Freetown, following rumours that the aggrieved party whose relatives were gunned by the OSD police in Wellington have plans to process to State Avenue to complain to the president, Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma of the brutal incident done by the police to their children.

According to them, reason for condoning the area was to prevent a losing riot by unscrupulous individuals from unleashing untold mayhem in the streets of the capital Freetown.

Other reports say the students were taking the human remains of the late Ismail when they were halted by the police for inspection. This according to the report was where the conflict ignited and some irate youths went wild against the police.

The police in their search to restore back the lost confidence decided to shoot tear gas canisters to the riotous public so as to dispatch the angry group; they also made an attempt to arrest a few suspects during the melee. Prior to this development, the police had clashed with criminals on several occasions also in the eastern part of Freetown, at Wellington, Kuntoloh and Peacock Farm respectively where they reportedly killed two persons, leaving one injured.

Sierra Express has been talking to few youths in the Wellington community who have been saying the following: “if the current spate of violence, which is dripping between the police and members of the public, continues under such trends, the 2012 elections are going to be crucial.”

Youths at Wellington said they formed a community vigilante group to salvage their community from the wrench of petty thieving. Talking to one of the senior vigilante youths, Alhaji Sankoh, he said they formed their vigilante group to work in consonance with the Police. Upon this backdrop, he said, they were acting in the mandate of the police to protect life and properties within their community. He said they were shocked to later see the police engaging them with gun battle while they were chasing a suspected gang group.

He noted that when the police approached them, they attempted in identifying themselves and suddenly the police opened sporadic firing against their group.

Some of the youths in registering their dismay said the miss-calculative actions of the police appeared as if the police had a stake in the activities of some of these criminals, as many say the country is about to enter into an historic electioneering calendar come 2012 and if care is not taken reckless policing might spark mayhem amongst irate youths.

By Emma Black & Mohamed Kabbah Turay

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