Arona Tin in court ( photo: Kexx)
By Landing Ceesay
Sergeant Landing Jallow of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) testified in court that during their investigation at a Westfield bureau, Arona Tine’s mobile phone was found with blood stains. Arona Tine faces trial for a murder charge under Section 187 of The Gambia’s Criminal Code.
The prosecution alleges that on January 19, 2024, in Westfield, within Kanifing Municipality, Arona Tine fatally stabbed Fatoumatta Kargbo, committing the crime intentionally.
During recent court proceedings, Sergeant Jallow informed that D50,000 was recovered from the crime scene and submitted as evidence. He further testified on Monday that four mobile phones were retrieved during the search, with three belonging to the victim, Fatoumatta Kargbo, and one to Arona Tine, the accused.
“Can you tell the court what ensued after the cash was recovered from the bureau?” State Counsel A. Gibba asked Sergeant Jallow.
“After the cash was recovered, we also recovered four mobile phones, three phones belonging to the victim (Fatoumatta Kargbo) and one phone belonging to the accused person (Arona Tine).
“How were you able to establish that the said mobile phones belonged to the deceased? Counsel A. Gibba asked.
“One of the phones, that is, the iPhone, was active, and I have been receiving incoming calls, and they were asking for Fatoumatta Kargbo, the deceased. The remaining two phones were established when I invited the family to the police station, who confirmed to me that the two phones belonged to the deceased,” Sergeant Jallow testified.
Sergeant Jallow informed the court that the phones were discovered within the bureau on the same day the money was recovered, when asked about their exact location.
“Three mobile phones were recovered together on the same save box behind the counter, while the fourth mobile phone belonging to the accused person was recovered on the counter with blood stained on it,” Sergeant Jallow testified.
Sergeant Jallow mentioned that the recovered phones included a white iPhone, a blue Samsung Android, and an Itel Android phone, though he couldn’t recall the exact color of the Itel device.
“When you took these phones to the station, what did you do with them?” Counsel Gibba asked.
“I put them in a paper bag and labeled them with the name of the deceased,” Sergeant Jallow told the court.
Sergeant Jallow testified that if shown the bag in which he placed the phones, he could identify it.
Subsequently, the bag containing the phones was presented to the witness for identification, and he confirmed it as the one used to store the deceased’s phones.
The phones belonging to the deceased were also presented to the witness, who identified them as those recovered at the crime scene.
Following this identification, the Prosecution sought to submit them as evidence and have them marked as exhibits.
The defence team raised no objections to the admission of the mobile phones as evidence.
Honorable Justice Ebrima Jaiteh then admitted the three mobile phones and a brown envelope bag into evidence, marking them as exhibits P2a, P2b, P2c, and P2d.
The case was adjourned until Tuesday, July 9, 2024, for further proceedings.