By Fatima Kpaka
Samuel Caulker a motor mechanic and owner of the Vue Night Club at Aberdeen was on Tuesday 20th February 2024 sent on remand by Magistrate Sahr Kekura of Pademba Road court No1 for allegedly defrauding lawyer Charles Abass Bangura over NLe 30,000 over a vehicle.
The accused made his first appearance and was arraigned for Malicious Damage, Obtaining Money by False Pretenses and other related charges.
According to the indictments, the accused on a date unknown in February 2023, in Freetown maliciously damaged a side mirror of one Toyota Four-Runner Jeep Sport Edition with registration number CAB 416 valued $850 equivalent to Le 19,977 property of Charles Abass Bangura.
The police further alleged on counts two that the accused on a date unknown between October 2023 and November 2023, in Freetown, with intent to defraud obtained the sum of Le 9,000 from Charles Abass Bangura on the pretext that he would to amend the stiffened steering fault on the said Toyota Four-Runner jeep with registration number AUN 929 knowing same to be false.
The third charge added that the accused on a date unknown in December 2023, in Freetown with intent to defraud obtained from Charles Abass Bangura the sum of NLe 2,500 on the pretext that he would amend a sensor problem on one Benz C 300 with Registration number ARK 512 knowing same to be false.
Lawyer Charles Abass Bangura, while being led in evidence by Sergeant 9939 Lahai M. said that the accused was his motor mechanic.
He said sometimes in October 2023, he had a Four-Runner TRD 2022 model with registration number CAB 416 which was due for oil change.
” I called on the accused who came to the office and collected the vehicle, and upon returning in the evening hours with the vehicle I noticed that the right-hand side mirror had been removed and replaced with a damaged one,” he said
He said he immediately called the accused on the phone, and that the accused later came and saw it, and admitted guilt and promised that he would replace it with a new one, but ever since had not done so.
The cost of the side glass, he said is US $ 1,200 adding that as of that day the exchange rate was NLe 28, 800.
According to him the second vehicle is another Four-Runner Sport Edition 2008 model with registration number AUM 929 which was having a stiff steering problem which he said the accused diagnose and told him that it should be changed at the cost of NLe 9,000 which he gave to the accused at his house.
Lawyer Bangura said that the accused took the said vehicle for four days and returned it. He said that the accused parked the vehicle in his compound, adding that the day after when he wanted to use the vehicle, he noticed that nothing had changed.
” I made a phone call to him and he admitted same and promised to refund my money or come and take the vehicle to redo it”, he explained
He added that since then he had been calling the accused and sending him Whatsapp messages but the accused had not been responding, but that he only responded after so many days.
The witness said sometime in early December 2023 on a Saturday morning, he called the accused and told him that the vehicle used by his wife had a rim problem and that he wanted him to remove the sensor from the old rim and place it on the new one.
He said upon this request the accused said it would not work unless he bought a new one and when he enquired for cost the accused responded that it was NLe 500 for one sensor.
” I gave him NLE 2, 500 for the four sensor and left for Kenema, after two hours, I called the accused several times but he did not respond. He later returned call at around 6:00 pm saying that he had bought the sensor and would fix them in the morning,” the witness stated.
He said the accused promise to take his mom to church on Sunday morning upon his request but he did not and for the rest of the Sunday and days after, the accused never pick his calls.
On the 27th December 2023 the witness said whiles doing his normal exercise at Lumley Aberdeen beach in the morning hours, he saw the accused persons in front of his night club the Vue, adding that even before seeing the accused he had earlier made a report at CID HQ Pademba Road Freetown.
He said the accused promised to go to the police countless times but he did not do so at any time and it was difficult for the police to arrest him because they din’t know him, and added that on the 27th when he saw the accused he told his friend that he had been looking for the accused.
He said they went very close to him, and immediately made a call at the Aberdeen Police Station from where police personnel came with their vehicle and arrested him and took him to the station and he was later transferred to the CID HQ where he was detained.
He said two days later the police called him and said that the accused was asking for time that on or before the 2nd February 2024 he would pay for all the items and money he had received and had admitted guilt.
According to him, he agreed, adding that on the 3rd February 2024, he went to the CID to enquire as to whether the accused had paid, but said that a police officer by name 99 told him that the accused since his arrest only paid US $ 300 dollars but since then had not been picking their calls.
According to him, the police placed a warrant of arrest for the accused who was subsequently arrested and charged to court and that he made statements to the police.
Defense Counsel Atachor deferred cross examination but however applied for bail on behalf of the accused noting that he had a fixed abode and that if admitted to bail the accused would not jump bail.
He said the accused had shown commitment by paying US$ 300.
He disclosed that he had part payment with him and was ready to satisfy the complainant.
His application was made pursuant to section 79 sub section 3 of the Criminal Procedure Act No 32 of 1965.
The prosecuting counsel who happened to be the complainant opposed to bail and asked for a stand down in order to prepare and affidavit in opposition to bail.
Magistrate Sahr Kekura however refused the accused bail and remanded him in custody due to the serious nature of the offences charge, and adjourned the matter to the 21st of February 2024.