By Joe Turay
Sierra Leone’s High Court has sentenced five men to 80 years’ imprisonment each for the robbery and murder of Reverend Father Augustine Dauda Amadu, while a sixth man was jailed for 14 years for receiving stolen property linked to the crime.
Justice Alhaji Momoh Jah Stevens delivered the judgment after finding that prosecutors had proved the charges beyond reasonable doubt.
The five men sentenced to 80 years each are Martin Sallu, Gbessay Sawray, Foday Sallu, John Bangali and Joseph Gikamaji Kamara. Foday Alhassan Sesay, the sixth accused, was sentenced to 14 years’ imprisonment after being convicted of receiving a stolen Lenovo laptop taken during the robbery.
The prosecution said the five men conspired between Aug. 1 and Aug. 29, 2025, to rob Reverend Father Augustine Dauda Amadu at his parish in Kenema, in eastern Sierra Leone.
During the attack, the assailants stole a Lenovo laptop valued at 350 U.S. dollars and 5,000 leones in cash before killing the priest, the court heard
Justice Stevens said confessional statements made by Gbessay Sawray and Joseph Gikamaji Kamara placed them at the scene of the crime and detailed their involvement in the killing.
The judge also said Foday Sallu admitted in a police statement that he knew of the plan to attack the priest but failed to report it to the authorities.
“The life of the Reverend Father could have been saved if the information had been reported to the police,” Justice Stevens said.
Martin Sallu, Foday Sallu and John Bangali testified in their defence, arguing that their confessional statements had been obtained under duress. Justice Stevens rejected their claims, ruling that the statements were voluntary and contained detailed accounts of how the robbery and murder had been planned and carried out.
According to medical evidence presented in court, Reverend Father Amadu suffered a broken neck and a fractured right hand. His body was later discovered in a pool of blood inside a toilet at the parish premises.
Describing the killing as “brutal and senseless”, Justice Stevens said the convicts had shown no regard for human life and had offered no justification for murdering a man of God.
The judge further noted that Gbessay Sawray had been serving a life sentence for another offence before escaping from prison and becoming involved in the robbery and murder.
All six accused pleaded not guilty to the charges.
During their allocutus, five of the convicts appealed for mercy, while Gbessay Sawray maintained that he was not responsible for the offence.
State prosecutor Patrick Lumumba Williams urged the court to impose appropriate custodial sentences, while defence counsel Karim Kargbo of the Sierra Leone Legal Aid Board appealed for leniency.
Justice Stevens ordered that the sentences imposed on the five men convicted of robbery and murder run consecutively, bringing each of their prison terms to a total of 80 years. Foday Alhassan Sesay was sentenced to 14 years’ imprisonment for knowingly receiving stolen property.
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The murder of Reverend Father Augustine Dauda Amadu in August 2025 sent shockwaves across Sierra Leone and prompted widespread condemnation from the Catholic Church, civil society groups and the public.
The priest was found dead at his parish in Kenema after what investigators described as a violent robbery, triggering calls for a swift investigation and justice for the slain clergyman.
The case is among the most prominent murder and aggravated robbery prosecutions concluded by Sierra Leone’s High Court in recent years.
It also renewed concerns over violent crime targeting religious institutions and exposed weaknesses in the prison system after the court heard that one of the principal offenders had escaped from custody while serving a life sentence for an earlier conviction.
The judgment is expected to be viewed as a strong signal from the judiciary that violent crimes, particularly those involving murder and armed robbery, will attract severe punishment as authorities seek to deter serious criminal offences and strengthen public confidence in the justice system.
