Muhammed Jasseh is currently on trial at the Brusubi Magistrates’ Court in the West Coast Region, facing allegations of raping a 13-year-old boy. The trial is being heard before Magistrate Isatou Jallow. The prosecution, led by Sub-Inspector Jamanka, has charged Jasseh with unnatural offence, contrary to Section 122 of the Criminal Offences Act, 2025. The accused is represented by defence counsel B. Boyo. Jasseh has pleaded not guilty to the charge and vehemently denied the accusations, stating, "I denied raping the boy, and I told the grandmother that when kids reach the revision stage of the Quran, they bring all kinds of habits." He further asserted, "Everything the son said has never happened, and such things cannot happen without the knowledge of other children. Everything he said was a lie." Responding to an implicit accusation of violence, Jasseh also stated, "No, that is not true. I have no right to beat him while I am not his teacher."
Accused's Account of Events
Muhammed Jasseh has pleaded not guilty to the charge of unnatural offence. During his testimony before Magistrate Isatou Jallow, Jasseh stated that he was not an Oustass, a Quranic teacher, but rather a student himself who was also studying the Quran. He further testified that the Quranic centre where the complainant studied was owned by his father. Jasseh explained that he only assisted his father at the institution because there was no Oustass present to conduct the classes, noting his role as an assistant rather than a primary teacher.
Jasseh testified that he taught the complainant until the boy had completed reading the Quran. Following the completion of the initial reading, Jasseh said he asked the boy to continue attending revision classes to strengthen his memorization of the holy book. This period of revision is key in Quranic studies for solidifying knowledge. Jasseh then stated that the child subsequently ran away from the Darra, the Quranic school, but was later returned to the institution by his grandmother. This marked the first instance of the complainant leaving the Darra.
The accused told the court that the complainant ran away again the following morning. Jasseh maintained that the boy had not been harmed prior to this second departure, reiterating his denial of any physical abuse. He testified that the boy was brought back to the Darra on the same day, but left the institution for a third time shortly thereafter, indicating a pattern of the boy absconding from the school. Jasseh's account suggests that the boy's repeated departures were voluntary and not a result of any mistreatment by him.
Jasseh recounted that after the complainant had been away from the Darra for several days, the child’s grandmother telephoned him. During this call, Jasseh said, the grandmother accused him of raping the boy. This accusation came after the boy's multiple returns and departures from the Darra. Jasseh further testified that after the complainant allegedly ran away for a fourth time, the boy’s mother issued a warning. She reportedly stated that she would report him to the police if her son was not found. Subsequently, Jasseh was arrested when police officers arrived, accompanied by the complainant’s father, following the mother's threat to involve law enforcement.
Throughout his testimony, Jasseh consistently denied responsibility for any harm or misconduct towards the boy. He testified that the complainant’s hair had been shaved by other children at the Darra and explicitly denied being responsible for this action. This detail aims to counter any suggestion that he was involved in or sanctioned physical alterations to the boy.
Defence Witness Corroboration
Muhammed Jasseh testified that other children at the Darra, the Quranic school, had shaved the complainant's hair, and he denied any responsibility for this action. Bayi Bittaye appeared as the second defence witness, offering testimony in support of Jasseh's account. His testimony sought to corroborate key aspects of Jasseh's defence, particularly regarding the environment at the Darra and the circumstances surrounding the complainant's presence there.
Bittaye testified that students at the Darra were occasionally shaved, presenting this as a common practice within the institution rather than an isolated incident related to the complainant. He further claimed that upon the complainant's return from one of the instances where he had run away, it was Edrissa Jallow who shaved the boy's hair, not Muhammed Jasseh. This testimony directly aligns with Jasseh's earlier statement in court where he asserted, "Everything the son said has never happened, and such things cannot happen without the knowledge of other children. Everything he said was a lie," thereby strengthening the defence's position that Jasseh was not involved in the shaving. Jasseh also previously denied physically harming the boy, stating, "No, that is not true. I have no right to beat him while I am not his teacher."
In his testimony, Bittaye also stated that he was responsible for holding the key to the accused's room, keeping it in his pocket. This detail intends to suggest that access to Jasseh's private space was controlled, potentially limiting opportunities for the alleged offence to occur unnoticed. He indicated that he remained unaware of the reasons behind the complainant's repeated departures from the Darra until after Muhammed Jasseh's arrest in connection with the allegations. Bittaye's testimony reinforces the idea that the reasons for the boy running away were not immediately apparent to those at the Darra and only became clear in the context of the subsequent legal proceedings. Jasseh had previously told the grandmother that "when kids reach the revision stage of the Quran, they bring all kinds of habits," suggesting a pattern of behavior that could lead to the boy running away and offering a non-criminal explanation for the complainant's actions. Bittaye's lack of prior knowledge about the reasons for the departures further supports the defence's narrative that the allegations surfaced abruptly and without prior indications of wrongdoing.
Legal Proceedings and Next Steps
The trial is being heard before Magistrate Isatou Jallow at the Brusubi Magistrates’ Court. Defence counsel B. Boyo represents the accused, Muhammed Jasseh, in the ongoing proceedings, diligently presenting his client's case and cross-examining witnesses. The prosecution, led by Sub-Inspector Jamanka, maintains that on July 24, 2025, within the West Coast Region, Mr. Jasseh engaged in a sexual act with a 13-year-old boy by inserting his private part into the child’s anus. This specific allegation forms the core of the unnatural offence charge against the Quranic teacher, outlining the precise nature of the accusation the prosecution seeks to prove. The charge is brought contrary to Section 122 of the Criminal Offences Act, 2025, a legal provision specifically addressing such offences. The court has scheduled the continuation of the defence for June 29, 2026, at 11 am, allowing further testimony and evidence to be presented in this significant case. The proceedings continue as the court seeks to ascertain the truth of the serious allegations.
