By Jeneba Conteh.
In a significant legal development, Yusif Turay, Ibrahim Thullah, and four other Orange Money agents appeared before Magistrate Santigie Bangura at the Pademba Road Court No. 2 in Freetown, facing serious allegations of fraud against Orange Mobile Finance Limited. The total amount in question is a whopping 19,878,360 Leones.
The accused, including Ibrahim Nat Thomas, Hassan Gibril Kargbo, Alhaji Santigie Sesay, and Sheriff Osman Sankoh, were charged with three counts each. These charges include conspiracy to defraud, which is against existing law, as well as two counts of larceny by a servant, which violates Section 17 (1)(a) of the Larceny Act of 1916.
According to the details of the offence, the alleged fraudulent activities occurred between March 24th and 25th, 2025, at various Access Bank Sierra Leone Limited branches in Freetown’s western area. The prosecution alleges that the accused conspired with other unidentified individuals to defraud Orange Mobile Finance Limited of the aforementioned amount. The second count of the charges alleges that on the same dates and locations, all accused individuals acting as Orange Mobile Money agents used the Orange Money wallet as a bank transaction platform to illegally withdraw the same amount of nineteen million eight hundred and seventy-eight thousand three hundred and sixty Leones from bank account number 0010160000326. This account is managed by the Orange Money Wallet Collection, which is owned by Orange Mobile Finance Limited. The third count adds to the allegations by stating that on the same date, in Rotifunk Lungi, located in the Kaffu Bullom Chiefdom of the Port Loko District in the North West Region, the accused misappropriated the same amount from the same bank account, implicating them in the alleged fraud against Orange Mobile Finance Limited. When the charges were read and explained to the accused, they declined to enter a plea. The prosecutor, Deputy Superintendent of Police Sorie Conteh, requested a brief break to meet with witnesses in preparation for the trial. Abdul Rahman Kargbo Esq, the accused’s defence counsel, applied for bail on his behalf. He contended that the defendants are Sierra Leonean residents within the jurisdiction, have reliable sureties ready to stand in for them, and will not interfere with prosecution witnesses or flee justice. His application was made under Section 79(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act No. 32 of 1965. However, Magistrate Bangura denied the bail application, citing the seriousness of the charges against the accused. The court found the allegations serious enough to warrant continued detention. As a result, the case has been adjourned until April 14, 2025, with the accused remaining in custody while the legal process unfolds.
