Accused Spends 11years In Detention Without Trial

An accused at the Kenema Correctional Centre, Dauda Kiwo has spent 11years on remand without trial on allegations of conspiracy, larceny and burglary.


The correctional document says the inmate was taken in on July 2, 2010, but the inmate denied that he was arrested towards the end of 2007 and charged before a Magistrate Court. He said he appeared four times before a magistrate before his matter was committed to the high court. Since then, he has spent over 11years awaiting trial before a high court and he has been moved from Kenema to Pademba Road Correctional Centre and brought back to Kenema.


The inmate was recounting his lack of appearance and delay in trial to the Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone (HRCSL), whose Commissioners were in the eastern region on outreach activities and monitoring the correctional centres.


During their monitoring activities at the Makeni, Kenema, Moyamba and Bo Correctional Centres, the HRCSL observed appalling conditions in these Centres including overcrowding, over detention and poor sanitary conditions.


At the Makeni Correctional Centre built for 80 inmates but had over 230, inmates placed per cell range between 22 to 30 and dozens of those inmates were sentenced for petty offences and fines ranging from Le100,000 to Le150,000. Majority of the inmates there were without indictments.


The condition at the Moyamba Correctional Centre cuts across correctional centres across the country in terms of overcrowding, over detention and hygiene conditions. Bonthe was built for 65 inmates but at the time of monitoring by the HRCSL, it had a capacity of 110 inmates with half of that number awaiting indictments.


Josiah Gberie, an inmate at the Moyamba Correctional Centre had spent 17months on remand; and another inmate, Joseph Thomas had spent 42 months awaiting indictment. Joseph was moved from Freetown and Bo and back to Moyamba.


The number of inmates awaiting indictments at the Bo Correctional Centre is 131 out of a total of 265 inmates. The Centre was built to cater for 80 inmates. One inmate, Dennis Alie was sentenced to 2 years or pay a fine of Le200,000 for the possession of offensive weapon. Kenema tops the regions with the highest number of inmates awaiting indictments. 152 are without out of a number of 296 inmates.