By: Cecilia E.L. Mendy
A prosecution witness broke down in tears before the High Court on Thursday while recounting an alleged attempted robbery at the AMM Forex Bureau in Manjai Kunda, where she told the court she was held at knifepoint, tied up and threatened by the accused.
The witness, Halimatou Bah of Bundung, who works at the Western Union bureau operated by AMM Forex Bureau, was testifying before Justice Sidi K. Jobarteh in the trial of Basirou Sarr.
Sarr is facing a charge of attempted robbery contrary to Section 249(2)(a)(c) of the Criminal Offences Act 2025. Prosecutors allege that on 10 February 2026 at Manjai Kunda, he attempted to rob Bah while she was performing her duties at the bureau.
Giving evidence as the first prosecution witness, Bah told the court that she first met the accused when he visited the bureau to enquire about the exchange rate of the US dollar. She said she informed him that the rate was D73 before he left.
She testified that the accused later returned and asked her to respond to his “granny”, adding that she was uncertain whether he was referring to his grandmother or grandfather.
According to Bah, as she moved towards the door, the accused allegedly pushed her back into the office, locked one of the doors and placed the key in his pocket.
Fighting back tears, she told the court that Sarr pinned her against a wall, produced a knife and threatened to kill her if she raised an alarm. She said he demanded money, later removed a rope from his pocket, tied her hands and used her veil to cover her face.
The witness said she pleaded with him not to harm her and urged him to take the money and leave.
She further testified that the accused took a bag containing money before throwing her to the floor, leading to a struggle over the knife during which she sustained an injury to one of her fingers.
Bah told the court that her cries for help attracted Lamin Bojang, a passer-by who intervened and pulled the accused away from her, causing the knife to fall to the ground.
She said the matter was subsequently reported to the Manjai Police Station and she was taken to hospital for treatment. The witness added that the incident left her traumatised and fearful.
During cross-examination, defence counsel C. Mendy questioned how Bojang gained access to the office if the accused had locked the door. Bah explained that the bureau had two doors and that only one was locked, allowing Bojang to enter after hearing her cries.
Proceedings were briefly interrupted when Sarr became emotional and started crying in the dock. Asked by Justice Jobarteh why he was crying, the accused told the court that he was feeling dizzy.
The defence challenged aspects of Bah’s testimony, including her account of the struggle over the knife. However, the witness maintained that the rope used to tie her hands was not tightly fastened, allowing her to resist.
When accused of giving false evidence, Bah rejected the allegation, saying she would not falsely accuse anyone while under oath.
The witness confirmed that she made a statement to the police. Defence counsel later sought to tender the statement into evidence, but State Counsel A. Drammeh objected, arguing that the proper foundation had not been established.
Justice Jobarteh upheld the objection, ruling that the witness had not confirmed that the document presented was her statement. The court therefore rejected the application and marked the document as “Rejected 1.”
The case was adjourned until 27 July 2026 for the testimony of the second prosecution witness.