The former Station Manager of the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank (SLCB) in Bo John Mans has been acquitted and discharged after his appeal in an Anti- Corruption Commission (ACC) case in the Appeal Court of Sierra Leone on November 27.
The 1st Appellant, Franciss Fofanah Komeh and 2nd Appellant, John Mans, filed an appeal in the Appeal Court against a judgement of the High Court delivered by Honourable Justice N.C Browne-Marke on 18th January 2011.
The 1st and 2nd accused persons were charged with three counts of Misappropriation of Public Funds contrary to section 36 (1) of the Anti Corruption Act, 2008 (count 1), Abuse of Office contrary to section 42 (1) of the Anti-Corruption Act of 2008 (count 2 and 3).
According to the facts of the matter, the first appellant open an account with two cheques of Le14m and Le30m which were supposed to be money to be paid in favour of a ministry of Agriculture project were deposited in an account opened by the 1st appellant at the Makeni Branch of the Sierra Leone Commercial Bank (SLCB), an account which was authorized by the 2nd appellant who was also a branch manager of the bank.
Later, the total sum of Forty- Three Million, Eight Hundred and Eighty-Five Thousand (Le 43,885,000) again was withdrawn by the 1st appellant and was later paid into an account at the SLCB Congo Cross and later an agreement was made that the money was to be refunded on the approval of the 1st Appellant .
Based on this, the appellants were charged and convicted; the 1st accused was found guilty on the 1st and 3rd counts and fined a sum of Sixty Million Leones (Le60,000,000) or six years imprisonment and the 2nd accused was found guilty on count 2 only, and was to pay Thirty Million Leones (Le30,000,000) or three years imprisonment.
It was against this conviction and sentence, that both appellants appealed to the Court of Appeal.
The Respondent from the Anti- Corruption Commission was R.S. Fynn and the solicitor for the 1st Appellant is R.B. Kowa and A. S. Sesay for the 2nd Appellant.
According to the Presiding Appeal Court Judge, Justice P. O. Hamilton, in agreement with Justice V. M. Solomon and Justice A. S. Fofanah, from the totality of evidence, as contained in the record, retained the conviction of the 1st accused and set aside the conviction and sentence of the 2nd appellant and acquitted and discharged him.
By Emmanuella Kallon
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