By Emma Black
The Magistrate of the Masiaka Court, Magistrate Harold Kamara Esq., on Wednesday, October 22, 2025, presided over the arraignment of seven men from Mamanah village in the Koya chiefdom, Port Loko district, on multiple drug-related charges.
The accused persons Alie Daddy Kamara (35), Mohamed Lamin Turay (25), Abass Koroma (32), Yusif Kamara (31), Ibrahim Koroma (24), Yusif Kamara II (32), and Peter Ibrahim Koroma (25) were arrested by police on Friday, October 17, 2025, and subsequently brought before the court to answer to various offences under Sierra Leone’s drug control laws.
The case was prosecuted by inspector Gibril Kargbo, according to the charge sheet, the first accused, Alie Daddy Kamara, faces two counts of unlawful possession of substances suspected to be Kush and cannabis sativa, contrary to Section 8(a) of the National Drugs Control Act No. 10 of 2008.
Police allege that on the said date, the first accused was found in possession of quantities of substances believed to be Kush and dried leaves suspected to be Cannabis Sativa at Mamanah Village.
Meanwhile, the second to sixth accused persons were each charged separately with Frequenting a Place Used for Smoking Kush, contrary to Section 49(1) of the Pharmacy and Drugs Control Act, 2001. They all pleaded guilty to the charges and were each sentenced to pay a fine of Le 3,000, or, in default, serve 12 months imprisonment, pursuant to Section 59(2)(d) of the same Act.
However, the first accused, Alie Daddy Kamara, did not take a plea owing to the indictable nature of the charges against him, in line with section 112(a) and (b) of the criminal procedure Act No. 8 of 2024, Magistrate Kamara informed both the prosecution and the defence that the committal proceedings must not exceed 28 days, he further ordered the prosecution to file and serve all witness statements within 14 days of the first appearance, in compliance with the provisions of the Act.
In his concluding remarks, Magistrate Harold Kamara Esq. issued a stern warning to young people about the dangers of drug abuse, particularly the use of Kush, which he described as a major threat to the country’s youth population.
Kush is not only killing dreams but tearing apart families, he cautioned, urging communities and parents to join the fight against drug misuse to safeguard Sierra Leone’s future generations.
Copyright –Published in Expo Times News on Monday, 27 October 2025 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
