By Mama A. Touray
The Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), AM Yusuf, has objected to the transcription of an audio recording presented in the Sukuta Jabang police shooting trial, arguing that the document wrongly identified speakers in the alleged conversation between Mama Jabbi and Ousainou Bojang.
The case, which stems from the alleged shooting incident at the Sukuta traffic light on September 12, 2023, was last adjourned during the testimony of the twelfth defence witness, who produced the audio said to involve Jabbi and Bojang.
When proceedings resumed on Tuesday, DPP Yusuf told the court that the transcription was flawed. “After going through the transcribed audio, I saw Mama Jabbi, Ousainou Bojang, Mama Jabbi, and Ousainou Bojang. And I could recall what we heard from the audio; there was no Mama Jabbi, Ousainou Bojang,” he said.
Defence counsel J. Jeng countered that the recording clearly showed Jabbi speaking to Bojang.
“When you play the audio in court here, you will realize that Mama Jabbi was speaking to Ousainou because Mama made mention of Ousainou’s name on multiple occasions. So maybe we wouldn’t know that it was Mama, but that it was clear that Mama was speaking to Ousainou,” he submitted.
Counsel Jobarteh, representing Amie Bojang, supported Jeng’s position, adding: “In addition to what the defence counsel stated, I believe the witness who was giving evidence has explained to the court that the audio was also circulated widely in other media outlets and that it is established that it was an audio recording between Mama Jabbi and Ousainou Bojang.”
Justice Jaiteh, after hearing both sides, upheld the prosecution’s objection, saying: “Mama did not say it is Mama speaking, it was not like an interview, it’s a random recording. It should be picked up randomly like that, so it should be an unknown speaker, so the observation by DPP is proper.”
He continued: “You don’t assume or presume that this is the person speaking. This is a court, and it is different from the public place where you can speak in parables. Here we don’t speak in parables; we speak in evidence, so I will suggest that the observation made by DPP is proper.”
Justice Jaiteh then ordered the court clerk to return the document to the transcribers to remove the names and ensure the transcript reflects only what is heard in the audio. “It is not for them to say it’s Mama speaking or Ousainou speaking,” he instructed.
The matter has been adjourned to Tuesday, 2 December 2025, at 10 a.m.
By Mama A. Touray The Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), AM Yusuf, has objected to the transcription of an audio recording presented in the Sukuta Jabang police shooting trial, arguing that the document wrongly identified speakers in the alleged conversation between Mama Jabbi and Ousainou Bojang. The case, which stems from the alleged shooting incident The Fatu Network