Haddy Ceesay, a hotelier on Monday December 29 testified as a prosecution witness before the Kanifing Magistrate Court in the ongoing criminal case in which the operations manager of Kombo Beach Hotel, Marc Maurice Alfred Vanmaldegum, is the accused person.

Testifying before Senior Magistrate Sainabou Wadda Ceesay, Haddy Ceesay informed the court that she is the executive house keeper at Kombo Beach Hotel.  She added that she has worked in the said hotel for the past 25 years and has known the accused (Marc) for a year.

Kaddy Ceesay went on to say that as she is the boss of the room attendants, her work includes supervising the room maids.  She added that on September 1st 2008, one of the room maids (Adama Sarr) informed her that the guest in room 110 had not spent the night in the room.  

According to her, Adama told her on the second day that the guest did not spent the night in the room again.  On the third day, she went on, "as I reported to work, I asked Adama whether the guest had spent the night in the room but Adama responded in the negative".

She said she then told Adama that she would report the matter to her boss, Adama Bah, the rooms divisional manager.  According to her, she asked Adama Sarr to accompany her to the room and they found the door unlocked. She added that they found the accused in the room and she asked the accused what he  was doing there.

"The accused told me that the guest asked him to open the door and the safe and take items from it.  He also told me that the guest ordered him to share the things among the housekeeping staff," she told the court.

She said she then informed her boss, Adama Bah, of the development. She stated that on the 12th of September 2008, Adama came with the hotel security, herself and two of her room maids to pack all the belongings in that room to keep in the store.  She said there was nothing in the safe. The case was adjourned to January 5.