By: Sainabou Sambou
The murder trial of four men accused of the brutal killing of Leonard Dominic commenced on Tuesday, July 15, 2025, at the High Court in Banjul, with gripping testimony from Sub-Inspector Modou Badjie. The officer, attached to Tujereng Police Station and deployed to the Serious Crime Unit, recounted the chilling discovery of Dominic’s body in the Brufut-Tanji forest, setting a somber tone for the high-stakes case before Justice Omar Cham.
The accused—Ibra Foli, Alfusainey Jallow, Dawda Sonko, and Malick Njie—face charges of murder and accessory after the fact under Sections 187 and 202 of the Criminal Code. State Counsel M.B. Mballow leads the prosecution, Counsel U.A. Ugar and Samuel Ade represent Foli, and Counsel Y. Joof defends Jallow, Sonko, and Njie.
Under oath, Sub-Inspector Badjie testified that on October 20, 2024, he received a call from Sergeant Sambou Signhateh, a traffic officer at Tanji Police Station. “Sergeant Sambou informed me that a man traveling from Brufut via the backway had discovered a body in the Brufut-Tanji forest,” Badjie told the court. He promptly instructed the sergeant to secure the scene and contacted the Scientific Support Unit in Brikama.
Arriving before the forensic team, Badjie described a grim sight: the deceased, later identified as Leonard Dominic, lay on his back, clad in a cap, blue jeans, and black Timberland shoes. “There were multiple stab wounds on the chest, back, wrist, and hand,” he stated, noting that the body appeared to have been moved from another location. After the Scientific Support Unit completed their work, the body was transported to Ndemban Clinic in Bakau and later to the Banjul mortuary.
During cross-examination, Counsel U.A. Ugar, representing Foli, pressed Badjie on the scene’s details. The officer confirmed arriving at approximately 10:30 a.m. and finding no one, including the accused, near the body. “I didn’t see anyone at the scene,” Badjie asserted.
The defense took a sharp turn when Counsel Samuel Ade challenged Badjie’s credibility, referencing a prior case, the State vs. Ibrahim Daffeh, before Justice Jorbateh. “Do you recall making a false statement in that court to deceive the judge?” Ade asked pointedly. State Counsel Mballow swiftly objected, arguing that the referenced case was unresolved and lacked a ruling discrediting Badjie. “Cross-examination on written matters requires documented evidence,” Mballow insisted. Ade claimed a ruling existed and requested that the question be suspended until he could produce it, which Justice Cham granted.
Ade further probed Badjie’s role in the investigation. The officer clarified he was not the lead investigator but had participated and submitted a report to his superiors. When asked if the report was before the court, Badjie admitted he was unaware. Pressed on whether any evidence directly linked Foli to the murder, Badjie reiterated, “I was part of the officers who visited the crime scene, but I was not part of the investigation team.”
The indictment alleges that on October 19, 2024, Ibra Foli stabbed Leonard Dominic multiple times in the chest and neck in Brufut, Ghana-town, causing his death. Jallow, Sonko, and Njie are accused of aiding in concealing the crime, making them accessories after the fact.
As the courtroom absorbed Badjie’s testimony, the weight of the case settled over the proceedings. Justice Cham adjourned the trial to Wednesday, July 16, 2025, at noon for continued cross-examination, leaving the gallery anticipating further revelations in this harrowing murder case.
