JANUARY 14, 2005
Posted: January 27, 2005
Philip Neville, The Standard Times
Unissa Bangura, The Standard Times
The Standard TimesHARASSED
Detectives from the government’s Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) raided the offices of the privately owned Standard Times in the capital, Freetown, and closed the paper for a day, according to the newspaper’s staff. The detectives searched staff members and said they were looking for stolen bank documents they believed had then been purchased by Unisa Bangura, a reporter at the paper who has covered corruption.
The documents were not found. However, the ACC officers detained Bangura and Editor Philip Neville and searched their homes, The Standard Times reported. Neville was released after several hours, but Bangura was detained overnight before being released without charge. The ACC gave no explanation for the detention, according to the newspaper, which said the ACC was seeking to muzzle the independent press.