After Final Arguments Were Concluded
PHOTO: Defendant Samuel Porte (left and wearing orange suit) being escorted by a Correction Officer
By Garmah Never Lomo, garmahlomo@gmail.com
TEMPLE OF JUSTICE, Monrovia- The Trial Jurors have handed down a unanimous guilty verdict in the murder case involving Samuel Porte who was accused of killing his wife for cooking cassava leaf soup at the Criminal Court “A”.
Defendant Porte was found guilty of the crimes of Murder and Aggravated Assault on Monday, February 26, 2024.
After receiving the unanimous guilty verdict, Judge Roosevelt Z. Willie instructed the clerk of court to write the probation office of the Ministry of Justice to conduct a sentence investigation report on the character and reputation of Defendant Samuel A. Porte prior to the crimes charged. Court Hears Final Arguments In Trial Of Man Who Allegedly Killed His Girlfriend For Cooking Cassava Leaf – News Public Trust
According to Judge Willie, the report will enable him to make an informed decision in the sentencing of the defendant which should be forwarded to the court on before Friday, March, 1, 2024. Recently, Defendant Porte resident of Crusoeville Township in rural Montserrado County pleaded guilty of killing his fiancée’ Sarah Y. Morris for cooking cassava leaf after he reportedly warned her not to cook such a soup.
The incident occurred on September 2, 2023. Dressed in an orange prison outfit with yellow slippers to match, defendant Porte appeared in court appealing to the government as well as the deceased families regretting his actions.
While pleading for mercy, the defendant said his action to have murdered Sarah was not intention, attributing it to the workings of the devil. Defendant Porte was arrested, charged and indicted by the Grand Jury of Montesrrado County for the crime of Murder.
Cross examining defendant Porte, prosecution asked whether the death of his fiancée’ was intentional, purposely and unlawfully done by him using a cutlass?
The question was objected to by defendant Porte lawyers; stating that, it was travelling beyond the scope of the witness’s testimony; as such, it was sustained by Judge Roosevelt Z. Willie. Again, he asked whether he was begging for mercy for which he is appealing to the family members of the deceased, whether he confirm that he killed his wife.
He answered in the affirmative. Prosecution produced four witnesses in the matter to include Inspector Jerry K. M. Wamah of the Homicide Division, Musu Cox, Delicia D. Gardner and Dearest Diggs.
Musu Cox, who is the mother of the deceased, testified that her daughter (Sarah) told her (Musu) that Samuel threw away food materials after preparing it for the next day.
She narrated that after hearing from her daughter, she asked Samuel and he told her (Musu) that he can’t eat cassava leaf and his woman beat cassava leaf to cook but she (Musu) said to him that, “you know anytime she (Sarah) cooking cassava leaf, she can always cook different soup for you.”
According to her, she settled the matter for the time and he pretended to agree but later, while they all went to bed, she heard her daughter shouting and that’s how she woke up and saw Samuel killing her daughter with a cutlass that she earlier met with him when she was called by her granddaughter.
She explained that, she tried stopping him but could not listen so she jumped on him, but he threw her down and cut off her toes.
The deceased daughters, Delicia D. Gardner and Dearest Digss testified that they got to know Samuel through their mother Sarah.
The girls admitted to seeing their foster father chopping their mom with the cutlass and they began to seek for help but the community is an area where houses are far from each other so one of them ran up the hill to call their uncle but before reaching to where the incident was taken place the defendant had already killed her mom and escaped the scene.
Also, Inspector Jerry K. Wamah explained his ordeal that during the preliminary investigation conducted with defendant Porte, he (Jerry) butcherly murdered his fiancee’ at their Crusoville Community residence arrested and denied the allegations levied against him but later admitted that he committed the act and escaped the crime scene.
Predicated upon the act, Inspector Wamah said Samuel was charged with the crimes of Murder and Aggravated Assault and was forwarded to court for prosecution.
Displaying the weapon used, Officer Wamah showed the cutlass that belongs to Samuel which he usually used for taking things from the bush for other purposes of which he said the cutlass had blood stain.