Crime Scene Evidence Submitted Before The Courts – The K Sinyan Murder Trial
The eighth Prosecution Witness (PW8) in the ongoing Kumba Sinyan murder trial has presented all the material evidence he gathered at the crime scene before the court.
Samba Bah, the 8th prosecution witness, is a resident of Bakau and a police officer who has been in service for 10years and currently in Kairaba police station. In his testimony presented, includes a metal shaving stick that he found in the room, the victim’s personal wallet, the victims shoes, the victims trousers, Two blood stained bed sheets and the black veil that was put in the victims mouth.
Kumba Sinyan is charged with murder contrary to section 187 of Criminal Code Cap: 10:01 Revised Laws of the Gambia 2009.
Prosecutors alleged that the suspect on or about the 14th of September 2022 at The Friendship Hostel in Bakau, with malice aforethought, caused the death of one Lamarana Jallow by cutting his stomach with an object and thereby committed an offense punishable with death under section 188 of the Criminal Code Cap of the Laws of the Gambia 2009.
PW8 told the court that on the 14th September he received a call from DS Foday Conta that there was a murder case at bakau in which the patrol team picked him up from his residence to the crime scene at around 3am.
“I went to the scene and evaluated the scenery together with Conta and other men. I went to room 111 where I found the victim lying down on the floor, his trousers was half way and there was a black veil in his month lying in a pool of blood and from there I started collecting the evidence. I found a Metal shaving stick, and an unused razor blade in the room.”PW8 said.
The witness (PW8) was shown the metal shaving stick to identify, and he identified it as the metal shaving stick that he found in the room.
The prosecution then applied to tender the metal razor blade as part of the evidence, with no objection from counsel representing the accused person (Kumba Sinyan), the metal
After the admission of the metal razor blade as evidence, Corporal Bah told the court that while collecting the evidence at the crime scene. He also found an unused razor blade in the room (crime scene). The witness was then given an unused razor blade for identification, and he confirmed to the court that, that was the exact razor blade he found at the crime scene.
The Prosecution then applied to tender the unused razor blade into prosecution evidence. The counsel for the accused did not object to the razor blade being tendered as part of the evidence, and Justice Jobarteh admitted the unused razor into evidence as exhibit P2.
Continuing his testimony to the court about the material evidence he collected from the crime scene, Corporal Bah said he collected a black wallet belonging to the late Lamarana Jallow (victim).
“I also collected the victim’s (Lamarana Jallow) personal wallet, black. In that wallet, there are two ATM Cards there. One is for Standard Chartered and the other one is Trust Bank,” the witness told the court.
The wallet and the two ATM Cards were shown to the witness by the Prosecution for identification, and he confirmed to the court that it was the wallet he found at the crime scene, prompting the prosecution to apply to tender the wallet and two ATM Cards into evidence. With no objection from Mrs. S Twum, the counsel for the accused person, Justice Jobarteh admitted them into evidence.
When asked what else he collected from the crime scene, Corporal Bah told the court he collected the late Lamarana Jallow’s shoes, trousers and shirt from the crime scene, describing Lamarana Jallow’s (victim) shoes as black in color, the trousers are ash in color and the shirt is black.
The victim’s shoes, trousers and shirt were given to the witness for identification, and he confirmed to the court that, those were the materials he mentioned in court. The prosecution then applied to tender the said materials into evidence and with no objection from the defence counsel, the presiding judge, Justice Sidi K. Jobarteh admitted them into evidence.
“I also collected two bedsheets, but I may not be able to identify the colour because there was too much blood on it,” the witness told the court.
The witness was given the two bedsheets in a package for identification, and he identified them to the court, and the Prosecution then applied to tender the two bedsheets into evidence. The defence yet again did not object to the admission of the two bedsheets into evidence, and Justice Jobarteh then admitted the two bedsheets into evidence.
“I also found a black veil in the victim’s (Lamarana Jallow) mouth. There was an inner and outer cover of a razor blade in the room,” the witness told the court.
The prosecution then gave a veil and the inner and outer cover of a razor blade for identification. The witness identified them to the court. The prosecution then applied to tender them into evidence. The defence counsel did not object to it, and they were admitted into evidence.
The witness further told the court that the victim’s (Lamarana Jallow) body was moved to the hospital after collecting the evidence.
“The following day in the morning, I went back to the station and I met the accused there. I was assigned to obtain a cautionary and voluntary statement from her,” the witness testified.
The witness was shown the cautionary and voluntary statements for identification, and he identified them as the ones he obtained from the accused person (Kumba Sinyan). The prosecution applied to tender the documents, and the defence did not object to it. Justice Jobarteh then admitted them into evidence as exhibits G1 and G2.
