Defense Counsel, Lawyer Edu Gomez and Police Prosecutor Sergeant 493 Badjie, yesterday gave their addresses in the assault case, presided over by Magistrate EF M’Bai of the Brikama Magistrates’ Court.

Kemo Saho, the accused person and native of Farato village, was brought to the court on charges of assault on Imam Samba Bah of the same village. He was alleged to have afflicted gruesome head and hand injuries, after he reportedly assaulted Imam Bah.

In his address, Lawyer Gomez reminded the court that the prosecution has called several witnesses during the proceedings of the case, and in addition, medical certificates on the complainant were tendered and marked as exhibits.  He told the court that it’s certain that on the alleged day and time of the incident, there happened an encounter in which the accused sustained injuries.

He informed the court that Imam Bah has a habit of going to the mosque with a cutlass - a place of worship that should be respected by all and sundry.

Lawyer Gomez pronounced that during the “show of force” between the two, it happened that the accused came to over -power his opponent, saying that every individual has the right to self defence. “I therefore emphasised that the accused was defending himself. I have not also lost sight of the provocation the defence’s evidence indicated, that there has been series of provocations meted against the complainant by the accused,” he said.

He then recounted that the accused sustained injuries, saying that the encounter does amount to a criminal act unless the accused is tried guilty of the case.

For his part, Police Prosecutor Sergeant 493 Badjie told the court that the accused has sometimes ago, appeared in the same court on similar charges.

Sergeant Badjie reminded the court that all the prosecution witnesses who testified in the case against the accused have confirmed the severity of the injuries sustained by Samba Bah. “Corporal Jammeh, the second prosecution witness, told the court that the accused surrendered himself to the Brikama Police Station and explained that he had a clash with the complainant and caused him injuries”, he said. 

He informed the court that the complainant was attacked from behind with a cutlass by the accused, after he (Imam Bah) gave a call for prayers at the mosque. This, he said, resulted in injuries on Imam Bah’s head and hand.

It was after this address that Presiding Magistrate M’bai declared at the court that he would endeavour to deliver judgement on September 12th.