By Isatou Sarr
The alleged victim in a hot oil assault case on Wednesday testified before the Kanifing Magistrates’ Court, where a blue-and-white plastic bowl said to have been used during the incident was tendered as evidence by the prosecution.
Jainaba Faye is charged with assault causing actual bodily harm for allegedly pouring hot oil on Mam Jarra Jarju at Bakoteh on 20 January 2026.
Testifying as the first prosecution witness (PW1) before Magistrate A. Manneh, the complainant, a cook by profession, told the court that the incident followed a dispute at her workplace involving the sale of food items.
According to the witness, a customer visited the food truck where she worked to purchase a “stuffed pie,” but only vegetables were available at the time. She said the vegetables were sold for D60, and when her colleague went to find change, the customer was reportedly allowed to keep D10 as a discount due to the unavailability of the requested item.
The witness stated that the accused subsequently arrived and questioned the staff about the selling price of the stuffed pie and why a discount had been granted. She alleged that the accused became angry and accused staff members of theft before entering the food truck.
Mam Jarra further testified that the accused later returned to the scene and asked the workers to come outside while she entered the food truck. While inside, the witness claimed they overheard the accused speaking on the telephone about personal matters. She said tensions escalated after the accused allegedly began using insulting language, which the workers responded to.
According to the testimony, the accused later asked the workers to join her inside the truck to count the day’s sales. The witness alleged that as she entered the truck ahead of two colleagues, the accused poured hot oil on her from a plastic bowl.
When shown a blue-and-white plastic bowl in court, the witness identified it as the item allegedly used in the incident. The prosecution, led by Inspector Kebbeh, applied to tender the bowl into evidence.
The accused objected, arguing that the bowl presented was not the one she used during cooking activities. However, Magistrate Manneh admitted the bowl into evidence, noting that the court would determine its relevance and authenticity at the judgment stage.
The case was adjourned to 16 February 2026 for continuation of proceedings.
