By:Ousman Saidykhan
The accused in the murder of PIU Officer Ousainou Bojang informed the high court judge that former Inspector General of Police (IGP) Abdoulie Sanyang commanded his officers to restrain both his hands and feet when he declined to take responsibility for a pair of shoes that he was allegedly said to own.
He said the former IGP, now the Interior Minister, entered a hall during interrogations at the Anti-Crime Unit in Banjulunding, using an electronic cigarette and speaking as if he were intoxicated.
“He told Commissioner Sowe that if they are putting me in any cell, let them make sure that my hands and legs are cuffed. That was when I was taken back to the Airport Police Station.
“When we got there, Ebou Sowe took out the handcuff and said it was from the authorities, so he had to do it. Then he cuffed my hands and legs and put me in the cell at the Airport Police Station. I was there for three days, and my feet started getting swollen,” Ousainou testified.
According to Ousainou, when the IGP came into the hall, he asked whether he was mad or under the influence of any substance, but he replied, “I don’t take anything.”
“He told me that the shoes they brought are Mine and I am the killer. I told him it was not me. I told him that the shoes belong to his elder brother Famara Bojang,” Ousainou said.
The combat boot, which was found in Ousainou’s compound, was the one the police said he had worn during his alleged shooting of PIU officers.
Ousainou is being tried for allegedly killing two police officers and injuring one at Sukuta-Jabang Traffic Lights on September 12, 2024.
He testified that the IGP did not believe him and asked him to wear the shoes, which he tried but did not fit him. He narrated that Sanyang told him he was the boss of all the officers in the hall.
“He told me that they will lock me. When he said that, I did not respond, and then he took out a handcuff that had a chain, and it was a brand new one. He took it from his bag and gave it to Commissioner Sowe.”
Ousainou said the O.C. of Airport Police Station told the officers to remove the cuffs from him, but they told him the keys were with Anti-Crime. He said the O.C. called them, and when they arrived, she instructed them to take the cuffs off him.
“When she asked Ebou Sowe to remove the cuff, Ebou Sowe refused and said it was from the authorities. But the woman asked him to remove it.
Then he uncuffed me. When he did that, he handcuffed me with a small one; they left me there and went. I was there till the following week and was taken to Kanifing Court with my sister. We were there until the court transferred the case to the High Court,” Bojang told High Court Judge Justice Jaiteh on Wednesday.
