PHOTO: Suspect Bill Friday Ziah and the knife allegedly used in the murder
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gamial.com
The second Judicial Circuit Court in Buchanan,Grand Bassa County is expected to shortly begin the trial of a man who allegedly murdered a 3-year-old girl in neigbouring River Cess County.
The child was stabbed to death in Rivercess County last year August by Bill Friday Ziah, a member of her father’s church.
The case was transferred to the Second Judicial Circuit Court in Buchanan City on a change of venue motion filed by state lawyers.
Defendant Bill Friday Ziah is expected to appear in court this Wednesday, February 23, 2022, but it might not be possible due to delay in providing prosecution funds by the Justice Ministry.
According to a source from the second Judicial Circuit Court in Buchanan City, state witnesses are set and ready to converge to the Court to testify in the case. But it is said that lack of transportation to transport the witnesses remain a major challenge due to delay for prosecution to provide funding in time.
In August of 2021, the Grand Jurors for River Cess County said the defendant Bill Friday Ziah, “did commit the Crime of Murder, felony of the first degree, to wit”.
A beautiful 3-year-old child became victim of a gruesome murder, after a man allegedly stabbed her in Liberia’s southern Rivercess County. This area is situated 150 miles southeast of Monrovia.
Police later arrested 23-year-old Friday Ziah, alias “Bil” over the stabbing to death of the baby girl, Hannah Pewee.
Bill reportedly stabbed little Hannah with a knife 18 times on Tuesday, August 10, 2021 in the ITI Community near the Rivercess-Sinoe border, before escaping the crime scene, according to the Coroner Jury’s report.
According to the child’s father, Pastor Yarkpazua Pewee, Bill allegedly committed the act after demanding money from him. Bill was a member of Pastor Pewee’s church.
Below are details of the indictment:
On August 10. 2021, during the intervening evening hours of 7:00 P.M., or thereabout, in the area commonly known as ITI, an abandoned logging camp, in the County of River Cess, Republic of Liberia, Defendant Bill Friday Ziah, did knowingly, purposely, intentionally, maliciously and criminally under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life, stabbed, little Hannah Pewee, a two (2) years old child, multiple times with a silver kitchen knife, thereby resulting to her death.
The indictment further stated that the criminal act of the defendant to murder the deceased on the aforesaid date and time came did happen after the deceased father, Pastor Yarkpazuah Pewee returned from evening church services on that eventful day and met Defendant Ziah at his residence and decided to offer Defendant Ziah food, but Defenndant Ziah rejected the offer.
That after Defendant Ziah rejected the offer, Pastor Pewee decided to go in door and returned with the amount of L$500(Liberian Five Hundred Dollars), which the Defendant also rejected, prompting Pastor Pewee to return inside of his house to increase the money.
That while Pastor Pewee was inside his house to get additional money for Defendant Ziah, he (Defendant Ziah), raised a Kitchen knife against one Benjamin Gbar, who promptly shouted at Pastor Pewee, who was indoor not to venture out door, informing him that the Defendant has raised a knife to kill him.
That at this stage, Pastor Pewee was thinking that his two years old daughter, the deceased, was already in door ran into door, not knowing that she was left in the corridor and then heard Gbar shouting to Pastor Pewee that the defendant was running with his daughter, the deceased and they all ran behind him in the nearby bushes, but were unsuccessful in that, by then Defendant Ziah, has stabbed the deceased multiple on various part of her body resulting to her death and was arrested and turned over to the Liberia National Police in the area.