A woman believed to be in her late 60s is reported to have been killed by her own son, who allegedly hit her with a digging implement, last Sunday evening, at around 8pm, in Busumbala, Western Region.

The deceased, identified as Nani Coba Jarju, is a veteran traditional birth attendant and a female circumciser in Busumbala. She was said to have been hit twice on her head by her 25-year old son, Buba Yarbo who, according to family sources, has been mentally ill for almost a decade now.

Narrating the sad story to the Daily Observer, Amie Jarsey, a wife to an uncle of the deceased,  and an eye witness to the incident, said the late Nani had spent the whole day out, upon returning home at around 8pm, had sat beside her (Amie). “As we were chatting, her son came out of the house to ask his mother where his shirt was. She then appealed to him to wait for a while until she finished smoking tobacco. The son went into the house only to return with a digger which he used to hit her for the first time.  His mother who could not bear the pain managed to run out of the veranda in a bid to save her life. But unfortunately she fell down,” she said.

Amie went on: “The boy then ran to where his mother was lying. I tried to intervene to avoid a second hit, but because of old age, I couldn’t and the son finally succeeded in hitting her for the second time on the head, causing blood to ooze out from her ears.”
According to the old woman, Buba Yarboe had been mentally ill but had never shown any signs of violence.  She described the incident as God’s will.  

Amie’s husband, Bakary Colley, an uncle to the deceased, who was said to have been away at the time of the incidence, described the whole scenario as “very unfortunate.”  He revealed to the Daily Observer that Buba was not born with mental incapacities, but had been mentally ill for almost a decade. “Buba,” he said, “was in Giboro when he was taken from there to Campama.  But due to limited space at the psychiatric clinic, he was discharged, and has been taking the drugs given to him by the clinic at home.”

Lamin EK Fofana, a close neighbour to the bereaved family, who arrived at the scene few minutes after the incidence, attested to the mental illness of the alleged killer, saying that Buba had been very fond of his late mother. “He always demanded money from his late mother to buy cigarettes. But any time the mother was bankrupt, Buba would behave aggressively,” he narrated, added that this has been the reason why the late mother always endeavored to meet his demands. “When I arrived at the scene, I found the late mother lying helplessly, seriously bleeding. I then wrapped her with a cloth and boarded a taxi to the Banjulinding Health Centre. But before we arrived at the said health centre, she passed away,” he noted with regret.

Asked whether Buba had made any such attempt before, the neighbour recalled a case when the alleged mad man attempted to chop off his brother’s neck. Fofana joined the bereaved family in describing the incident as very unfortunate, noting that the death of Nani Coba Jarju has left a big vacuum in the community. According to Fofana, the deceased was not only a traditional birth attendant and circumciser, but a traditional herbalist. Other close neighbours expressed similar sentiments, and prayed for eternal peace for the departed soul.

At the time of the interview, the body of late Nani Coba was said to be at the RVTH mortuary awaiting burial, whilst her son remains in police custody, helping them in their investigations.