VOPAD Radio: Station Manager and Team Charged with Murder in Shocking Case

The broadcasts of VOPAD Radio, once rich with news and narratives, are now reverberating with serious allegations of murder.

In a surprising turn of events, Joseph Mendel Lamin, also known as "Manager Dust," aged 37, a station manager at the Voice of Peace and Development Radio Station (VOPAD) in Kissi Town, Waterloo, along with two associates—Morlia Kamara, 29, a motorcycle rider, and Umaru Timbo, 35, a driver—have been detained.

They are charged with the murder of esteemed journalist Samuel Brima Mattia, who was discovered dead at the station on January 15, 2025.

The accused appeared before Magistrate Sahr Kekura at the Pademba Road Magistrate Court No.1, facing two charges: conspiracy to murder (Section 4 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861) and murder (Section 1 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861, as amended by the Abolition of the Death Penalty Act 2021).

The indictment claims that the three men conspired with others to commit murder at VOPAD Radio Station.

The allegations specify that they collaborated to kill Samuel Brima Mattia on January 15th.

The accused did not enter a plea when the charges were presented.

Magistrate Kekura denied bail and remanded all three accused to the Male Correctional Facility on Pademba Road in Freetown.

Inspector Kadie M Taylor, the prosecuting officer, requested a short adjournment to consult with witnesses.

The court approved the request, setting the next hearing for February 19, 2025.

The passing of Samuel Brima Mattia, a journalist renowned for his sports reporting, has deeply impacted the media community.