The Brikama Magistrates' Court has convicted and sentenced Muhammad Kuyateh to prison after finding him guilty of damaging a (NAWEC) borehole and stealing copper, an offence that disrupted water supply to parts of Brikama.
Delivering judgment on Monday, 29 June 2026, Magistrate M. Dem sentenced the convict to two years' imprisonment for malicious injury to property and three years' imprisonment for stealing. The court also ordered him to pay D106,000 in compensation to NAWEC or serve an additional six months' imprisonment in default of payment. The prison terms are to run consecutively.
In passing sentence, Magistrate Dem said the court had considered that the convict had no previous criminal record and was a young man with the potential for reform.
"Having found the convict, Muhammad Kuyateh, guilty on Counts Two and Three, I have considered the fact that he has no prior records presented formally before this court, and that he is a young man with potential for reformation," the magistrate said.
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The court, however, said the seriousness of the offences and their impact on the public outweighed those considerations.
"Water is the very lifeblood of any community. Access to clean, safe drinking water is not merely a utility; it is a fundamental human right essential for the health, survival and daily dignity of the citizenry," Magistrate Dem said.
The court heard that the convict targeted NAWEC's Borehole N4, which pumps about 90,000 litres of water every hour.
"By targeting NAWEC's Borehole N4, the convict did not just steal copper or damage property; he held an entire community hostage to hardship," the magistrate said.
According to the court, evidence showed that NAWEC required five to six days to repair the damage caused to the facility.
"The uncontroverted evidence before this court shows that it took NAWEC five to six days to repair the extensive damage caused by the convict. For nearly a week, thousands of households, businesses, schools and medical clinics in the Brikama Nyambai area were plunged into severe water scarcity," the magistrate said.
The court added that residents were forced to look for alternative sources of water during the disruption.
"This court must take judicial notice of the immense suffering, economic loss and public health risks forced upon innocent citizens who had to scramble for alternative water sources because of the convict's selfish greed," Magistrate Dem stated.
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The magistrate said the sentence was intended to punish the offender and deter others from committing similar offences.
"The sentence of this court must therefore serve a dual purpose: it must punish the convict proportionately for the hardship he has inflicted and, more importantly, it must serve as a potent, unyielding deterrent to others," he said.
"Let it be sent as a clear, loud message from this temple of justice to all criminally minded individuals that targeting public utilities for personal gain will be met with the harshest administrative and custodial consequences allowed by law. The court will not coddle economic saboteurs."
Magistrate Dem further stated that the level of culpability and the degree of harm caused were high.
"The level of culpability and degree of harm caused is at the highest point and there are no mitigating factors in favour of the convict," he said.
The court sentenced Muhammad Kuyateh to two years' imprisonment on Count Two, for malicious injury to property contrary to Section 290(1) of the Criminal Offences Act 2025, and three years' imprisonment on Count Three, for stealing contrary to Section 226 of the Criminal Offences Act 2025. It also ordered him to pay D106,000 in compensation to NAWEC, with a six-month prison term in default of payment. The custodial sentences are to run consecutively.
