Justice Ebrima Jaiteh of the High Court issued a directive to the Inspector General of Police to produce CCTV footage in the ongoing rape trial of Ass Malick Njie.
The accused, Ass Malick Njie, a former security officer at the QCell Headquarters along Kairaba Avenue, is facing a serious charge of raping a 12-year-old boy. The incident allegedly took place on the QCell premises while Njie was serving in his capacity as a security guard.
The trial was set to hear the testimony of the second defence witness when proceedings were halted. Defence Counsel F.C. Anyanwu informed the court that efforts had been made to secure CCTV footage of the alleged crime scene from QCell Limited.
Defence Counsel F.C. Anyanwu stated that a letter dated February 24, 2026, from QCell’s Human Resource and Legal Affairs Manager, Omar Cham, confirmed that police investigation was conducted at the time of the incident and the CCTV footage was handed over to the assigned police officers while Legal Affairs Manager, Omar Cham confirmed that the company did not retain any duplicates or copies of the footage.
Relying on Section 221 of the Evidence Act, 1994, Defence Counsel F.C. Anyanwu applied for an order to compel the police at the Latrikunda German Police Post to produce the footage. The section of the law empowers the court to summon any person or institution to produce documents or materials deemed relevant to a proceeding.
State Counsel F. Drammeh opposed the application, arguing that the prosecution’s case file contained no reference to any such footage and that the request was unnecessary.
Justice Jaiteh disagreed, emphasising that the court has a duty to ensure a fair trial for both parties. He noted that CCTV footage provides “objective and contemporaneous evidence” that could either support or undermine the case.
Justice Jaiteh ordered the Inspector General of Police to cause the investigating officers to produce the CCTV footage before the court on the next adjourned date and if the footage is missing or cannot be located, the investigating officer responsible for the case must appear in court to provide an explanation under oath regarding its status.
Justice Jaiteh ordered the Registrar of the Court to serve the order on the Inspector General of Police.
The case adjourned to May 5, 2026, at 10:00 am for the continuation of the defence’s case and to ensure compliance with the court’s order regarding the footage
