By Abdul Hassan Fackie

The Inspector General of Police, Mr. Francis Alieu Munu, has issued a very stern warning that with immediate effect any Police Officer causing loss of life without lawful justification would be charged to Court no matter the circumstance.

He made this statement in the wake of the frequent discharges of live rounds of ammunition by certain Operational Support (OSD) Officers carrying weapons thereby causing loss of lives of innocent people.

This kind of attitude, Mr. Munu stressed, clearly violates the rules of engagement and is therefore completely unacceptable.

The Inspector General lamented that in spite of repeated warnings for Police Officers to exercise restraint and discretion, the trend remains unabated.

“Let it be known by everybody that it is not a policy of the Sierra Leone Police for armed officers to discharge live rounds without lawful justification,” he maintained.

He also noted that Government has instituted an enquiry into the killings that took place in Bo, Bumbuna and Wellington, and urged all police Officers who are expected to testify in all or any of those incidents to fully cooperate as required by law.

“All Police Officers are under strict instructions to comply and pass this information to all their subordinates,” he concluded.

In a related development he stated that the Police was in high spirits and putting all mechanisms in place to secure the people of this country before, during and after the multi tier elections slated for November 17 this year.