Three officials from the Education Secretariat have appeared in court in Freetown over accusations of fraudulent activity linked to the delivery of hundreds of thousands of books meant to support education.
Sahr Johnny, Tiva Rogers, and Mohamed I. Kallon are facing charges of conspiracy to defraud and causing goods to be delivered under false pretences at Pademba Road Court No. 6. The case involves 714,500 books valued at NLe 2,666,000. The charge sheet states that between 1 November 2024 and 31 January 2025, the defendants allegedly conspired to defraud Eric James Lakoh of this amount.
The second charge claims that Johnny and Rogers persuaded Lakoh to deliver the books to Kallon at the Free Education Secretariat, falsely assuring him that payment would be made. The delivery reportedly took place at 126 Main Regent, Grafton Road, SS Camp, in Freetown.
The allegations have yet to be proven in court. At this stage, no plea was entered as the case is still in the committal proceedings phase. The three defendants remain on bail as the proceedings continue.
Magistrate Medissa Massaquio has adjourned the case to 9 November 2026. The crucial question remains whether the books were supplied under a false promise of payment, as claimed by the prosecution, or if a different scenario will emerge as the case unfolds.
