Three former members of Sierra Leone’s Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC) have been sentenced to lengthy prison sentences for their part in crimes committed during Sierra Leone’s decade-long civil conflict.
These are the first sentences to be handed down at the Special Court.
Alex Tamba Brima, aka “Gullit”; Brima Bazzy Kamara, and Santigie Borbor Kanu, alias “Five-Five” were each convicted on June 20 on 11 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
The Court imposed single “global” sentences of 50 years for Brima, 45 years for Kamara, and 50 years for Kanu. They will be given credit for time served since their arrests in 2003. The Court ordered that the three men begin serving their sentences immediately.
In announcing the sentences today, Presiding Judge Justice Julia Sebutinde(photo) noted that the three had been found guilty of “some of the most heinous, brutal and atrocious crimes ever recorded in human history”.
The Trial Chamber, consisting of Justice Sebutinde, Justice Richard Lussick and Justice Teresa Doherty, considered a number of aggravating circumstances when deliberating on the sentences. They found that there were no mitigating circumstances which would have argued for lower sentences.
The Judges noted that none of the accused had expressed remorse for their crimes.
Comments