23-Year-Old Sentenced to 55 Years for Cousin's Murder in Waterloo

Mohamed Jagitay, 23, was handed a 55-year prison sentence Friday by Justice Adrian Fisher of the High Court for the murder of his cousin, Ibrahim Jagitay. A jury found Jagitay guilty in a case stemming from a fatal incident in Joe Town, Waterloo.

During the sentencing hearing, Jagitay declined to address the court, a silence Justice Fisher noted as indicative of a "lack of remorse" for the killing of the "promising young man."

The judge condemned the crime as a "horrific act" that "tragically ended the life of Ibrahim Jagitay."

Justice Fisher emphasized the brutal nature of the murder, referencing an autopsy report that categorized the death as a "gruesome attack," not an accident. 

While the minimum sentence for murder is life imprisonment or 30 years, the judge stated that the "brutal nature of the crime and the convict's lack of remorse warranted a heavier sentence in accordance with the law." 

He added that the convict had "little justification for his actions."

The prosecution, led by Lawyer Musa Pious Sesay Jr., presented eight witnesses. One witness testified that Jagitay had taken the deceased out, claiming they were going to a party, but Ibrahim was never seen alive again. Another witness, their uncle, reported seeing a wound on Mohamed's palm, prompting him to notify the police.

The defense, led by Lawyer L. Rashid, argued that no direct witnesses saw the convict commit the murder and that a bloody knife found at the scene was never forensically tested to link it to Jagitay. Rashid urged the jury to base their verdict on facts, not suspicion.

However, phone records presented in court contradicted Jagitay's account of events. While he claimed to have dropped the deceased off in Calaba Town after a night at Salone Bar Night Club, records showed contact between the cousins until 11:33 p.m. on July 27. 

Critically, on July 28, at 1:21 a.m., Jagitay's phone was in Joe Town, the location of the incident, and at 1:58 a.m., he was in Newton. 

The autopsy determined Ibrahim died around 1:30 a.m. from "hemorrhagic shock due to deep stab wounds to the throat and abdomen, with the throat cut extending beyond the spinal cord."

Justice Fisher instructed the jury that if convinced beyond a reasonable doubt of the convict's guilt, they should return a guilty verdict. He acknowledged that while no one directly witnessed the murder, the evidence "pointed strongly to Mohamed Jagitay's guilt." 

The prosecution highlighted the strength of this circumstantial evidence, particularly the phone records placing Jagitay at the crime scene.