By Louise Jobe
Principal Magistrate Anna O. Mendy of the Brikama Magistrate’s Court on Monday convicted Alasana Janneh, an administrative assistant at the Gambia College, of abducting a student of the college by.
He was also convicted of assaulting the student victim inside the college premises.
Conviction means the Court has found the man liable for the offences of abduction and assault of the student girl.
The convict, Alasana Janneh, changed his plea on Monday. He had previously denied the charges but on Monday when he appeared with his lawyer, Senior Counsel Lamin K. Mboge, he pleaded guilty. Lawyer Mboge asked the charges to be read again and when this was done, Janneh pleaded guilty to both charges – abduction and assault.
Abduction is the act of making a person go somewhere with you, especially using threats or violence. In this case, the police relied on the statement and testimony of the victim who narrated how the College Staff manhandled her using force asking her to undress. As she refused, the man assaulted her causing injuries to her body, but she managed to escape.
The victim told the Court that Alasana Janneh continued to press her private part and waist while she pushed the accused person by his neck.
“Mr Janneh grabbed my neck with both hands until I struggled to breath. I started screaming, and he further pressed my neck to an extent that I could not scream anymore. He pushed and beat me for screaming for help, and I fell on a chair. He continued beating me randomly on every part of my body he felt like,” the victim explained.
“He strangled me while sitting on my back and continued beating me. I told him I couldn’t breath, don’t kill me, and he responded that he was going to kill me, I also replied to him that ‘it’s only Allah that kills, not you’,” she narrated.
“Mr Janneh told me even if I screamed, no one will hear my voice. So, I told him, ‘Is that your reason of keeping me here until this night?’ I requested water from him to drink because I was tasty, but he refused to provide water for me to drink,” she said.
“He (the accused person) told me to undress myself. I responded to him, ‘How can I undress myself while you are holding my hands backwards and sitting on me? I will never remove my clothes’. He insisted that I must undress.” The witness said she did not undress and managed to escape.
Senior Counsel L.K Mboge said Alasana Janneh is a first-time offender and he is also an employee under the civil service of this country. Mbige said the convict is married with kids adding that he did not waste the court’s time. Counsel Mboge urged the court to temper justice with mercy
The case was adjourned to Wednesday, 24th April 2024 for sentencing.
