Momodou Bah, also known as “Area,” accused of murdering university youth leader Ba Yunusa Mbye, pleaded not guilty to the charge of murder when he appeared before the High Court in Banjul.
At the last adjourned date, the accused had informed the court that his lawyer had passed away, prompting Justice S.K. Jobarteh to order the state to provide him with legal representation. In today’s proceedings, Momodou Bah was represented by Counsel M. Barrow of the National Agency for Legal Aid. The charge was read to him in Wolof, and he pleaded not guilty.
With the plea entered, the prosecution opened its case and called its first witness. Babadinding Ceesay, a security officer, told the court he recognised the accused in the dock, noting that both frequently gathered at the ghetto after work to chat.
He testified that on 15th June 2026, he was sitting under a tree with one Cherno Mbenga when he received a phone call. Before he stepped away to take the call, Yunusa Mbye also arrived. While he was some distance away on the phone, he heard a commotion. He recalled hearing Yunusa say he had already reduced the volume of a radio and asking what more the accused wanted.
Babadinding Ceesay said he knew the accused only by the nickname “Area” and did not know his real name at the time. He testified that he heard the accused insulting Yunusa’s mother over the radio’s volume, and heard Yunusa respond that he had already turned it down.
According to Babadinding Ceesay, upon hearing the noise, he saw the accused pick up a bottle near a fence and run toward Yunusa. Yunusa, in turn, picked up a stone. Babadinding Ceesay said that before he could reach them, the accused had already stabbed Yunusa in the neck, and Yunusa struck him with the stone.
He testified that he separated the two and that Yunusa held his neck and shouted for help. The accused attempted to approach Yunusa a second time before Demba arrived, at which point he fled. Babadinding Ceesay said he held Yunusa’s hand and, seeing the severity of the wound, he used a shirt to try to stop the bleeding, describing the bottle as having entered deep into Yunusa’s neck.
He said he called for a vehicle and walked to a nearby junction, where he began to feel weak. When he returned, One Demba Mbaye eventually drove Yunusa to Ndemban Clinic, where he was pronounced dead. The witness said he later gave a statement to police after encountering officers who had come to visit the crime scene.
Under cross-examination by Counsel Barrow, Babadinding Ceesay said he had known the deceased for many years, even before university, describing their relationship as cordial and noting he sometimes referred to Yunusa as “our President.”
He confirmed he was about 30 metres from the scene and on a phone call when the altercation occurred, but maintained he was able to identify what happened and who struck first once he moved closer.
He denied the suggestion from Counsel Barrow that the deceased had thrown the first stone, insisting the accused stabbed first and that Yunusa struck him with a stone. When counsel Barrow put to him that a stabbed person could not physically throw a stone at that instant, he disagreed, maintaining that Yunusa threw the stone before he grew weak from the injury.
Counsel Barrow further suggested the witness could not know how a stabbing feels, since he had never been stabbed himself. He responded that he had once lost fingers in a machine accident and understood what a serious injury felt like.
He testified he had known the deceased for a long time and they shared a cordial relationship. He confirmed that he was 30 metres away and his attention had been on his phone call until the loud noise drew his focus to the scene, which he described as a spot under a tree where people usually rested after work. He denied that the accused’s workplace was located beside the crime scene, adding that the accused was not employed at the time.
There were no further questions, and PW1 was discharged.
The prosecution’s second witness, Cherno Mbenga, a Fajara resident and watchman who was present at the scene, took the oath and identified the accused in the dock as the man who stabbed Yunusa Mbye.
He testified that on 15th June, he was seated with Yunusa when the accused asked Yunusa to reduce the volume of a radio. Yunusa complied and said he did not want any trouble.
Cherno Mbenga said he believed the matter had ended and was dozing off under the tree when he felt a glass bottle land on him. Waking up, he saw the accused holding the bottle.
He said he shouted at the accused, asking if he was mad and wanted to kill someone, then grabbed hold of him. Another man, Demba Ndow, struck the accused to the ground with a chair. He testified that the accused was struck because he refused to remain calm after stabbing Yunusa in the neck. The accused then got up, retrieved his mobile phone and his cigarettes and fled the scene as others gave chase.
Cherno Mbenga said that when he returned to the scene, he found Yunusa holding his neck and bleeding. He went to look for a taxi, but by the time he returned, Demba Ndow had already taken Yunusa to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead. He said he was later sent by his employer, and upon return, he found that the accused had been apprehended.
Under cross-examination by Counsel Barrow, Cherno Mbenga said there were three people present at the scene before the incident occurred. He confirmed he had given a statement to police and would be able to recognise it. After the statement was shown to him, the defence applied to have it tendered into evidence; the prosecution did not object, and the statement was admitted. PW2 was discharged, and the matter was adjourned to the 16th at 12 noon.
Momodou Bah is accused of stabbing Ba Yunusa Mbye with a bottle on the neck at Fajara on 15th June 2026, causing his death. He faces a charge of murder contrary to Section 155 of the Criminal Offences Act 2025
