After Being Raped…

Mbalia Fatmata Dumbuya Escapes From Security Forces

Reports from Wellington, eastern Freetown, revealed that one Mbalia Fatmata Dumbuya of 65 Maxwell street, Wellington, narrowly escaped death after she had been raped by armed security officers at her residence.

According to our source, Fatmata Dumbuya is the daughter of a prominent supporter of the main opposition party (APC), Mohamed Lamin Dumbuya, of the same address, and that during the August 10 2022 protest, armed security officers in the company of ruling party youths, stormed their residence, tied her father and beat him up. They then descended on the rest of the family in the house, beating and inflicting serious injuries on them. In the case of Fatmata, the armed officers beat and gang-raped her. She was left helpless and was only rescued by a neighbor.

According to the said rescuer, who spoke to us on the basis of anonymity, for security reasons, Fatmata was discovered bleeding, and she helped her escape through another neighbor’s house to a friend’s house nearby, where she stayed for some few hours, but was able to leave the area when a curfew was declared.

According to sources in the area, Mbalia Fatmata Dumbuya’s father is a known supporter of the main opposition party, and since the said protest was laid squarely on the hands of the main opposition party by the government, he and his family became the target of the security forces. It was disclosed that during the preceding period of the protest, ruling party youths had been issuing threats against him and his family, and on August 10, 2022, the day of the protest, these youths pointed his house to the security forces, who then broke into the house and caused all the mayhem alleged. Our source furthered that he saw a limping Fatmata leaving the neighborhood into a densely populated slum area and has since not seen her. Other residents in the area also disclosed that Fatmata’s father died shortly from the beating. Her where’s are yet unknown.

It was also revealed that several known supporters of the main opposition party in the area, who were female, were raped and shot. Things became worse during the curfew that was declared, as armed guards broke into people’s homes, dragged out alleged suspects and took them away. None of them returned home, nor are their whereabouts known.

Family members of the 30 civilians killed during and after the protest, were not allowed to identify their loved ones. As we go to press the whereabouts of Mbalia Fatmata Dumbuya are still unknown.