Police officer Togba lied?

Disrobed Officer Jerome S. Togba of the Liberia National Police walked into the offices of The New Dawn Newspaper recently, claiming to have been physically assaulted by court officers at the West Point Magisterial Court in West Point Township on alleged order of Stipendiary Magistrate Ernest F.B. Bana, leading to his uniform being torn, losing mobile phone and US$300 cash.

He constructs a story to the effect that he right-handedly caught a man, Beyan Bana with his legal wife at an entertainment center in Caldwell Township, Montserrado County, and the accused engaged him into a fight before fleeing to the West Point Magisterial Court.

According to him, Beyan is brother of Stipendiary Magistrate Earnest F.B. Bana, who issued a writ of arrest against him when in fact, the case between him and Beyan Bana was already at the Zone Seven (7) Police Station in Caldwell.

He further narrates that following the fight between him and Beyan, the suspect proceeded to the West Point Magisterial Court and filed a law suit against him, which led to the writ of arrest issued by the court.

Togba continues that while awaiting his lawyer at the court, Stipendiary Magistrate Bana allegedly convened the case and rendered judgment, requested him to pay bond fees of US$300 or go to jail, adding that in the process of talking with Magistrate Bana, he was prevented by court officers, who engaged him into a serious scuffle in an attempt to handcuff him but he resisted, leading to the damaging of his uniform, losing of phone and money.

He adds that after his alleged flogging by the court officers, Magistrate Bana then transferred the case to Caldwell where it originated from without any final conclusion.

But reacting to officer Togba’s assertions, Public Defender Atty. Sennay Carlor, II, who represented the legal interest of Togba at the West Point Magisterial Court, says his client jumped on complainant Beyan Bana, who had gone to intervene in stopping Togba from severely beating his wife in the street in Caldwell.

Atty. Carlor explains that after careful examination of the case, Togba pleaded guilty of the crime and therefore, begged the court for a conference, adding that during the conference, defendant Togba agreed to pay half of the US$600 loss sustained by the complainant Beyan Bana, but failed to comply, which led the court to order his detention.

For his part, Stipendiary Magistrate Ernest F. B. Bana, clarifies that he has no relationship with complainant Beyan Bana, despite the fact that they have the same last name, noting that Beyan hails from Bomi County, while he [Ernest] is from Lofa County.

Magisterial Bana further clarifies that on the day of the trial, Officer Togba wore a police uniform under his jacket to prevent him from being detained at the Monrovia Central Prison when in fact, the Liberia National Police had already disrobed him to enable him come to court.

Magistrate Bana says Togba disrupted the entire court when he went wild in the courtroom, causing people to run helter-skelter for safety, but was later subdued with assistance of some residents of the township.

By Emmanuel Mondaye-Editing by Jonathan Browne