Thiès Court: A case involving insults and the subdivision of a field ends in a general acquittal

The village chief of Keur Birima, A. Fall, and his four children — D. Fall, AL. Fall, E. Fall, and N. Fall — appeared before the Thiès court on Monday. They were being prosecuted for violence and assault, as well as non-public insults, following a complaint filed by A. Ndiaye, a resident of the village located in the commune of Notto-Diobass.

At the heart of this case is a land dispute. According to the plaintiff's statements, the village chief and his children entered his field while he was having a land survey conducted with a surveyor in preparation for subdividing the plot. The defendants allegedly interrupted the surveyor's work while hurling insults.

In court, A. Fall and his four children categorically rejected the accusations against them.

A. Fall explained that the disputed land was part of the national domain and belonged to the village community.

Having observed that A. Ndiaye was seeking to subdivide the space in order to market plots of land, he claims to have contacted the administrative and municipal authorities of Notto-Diobass.

Despite these efforts, A. Ndiaye reportedly continued his operations. The village chief also denied using any offensive language. His four children echoed this statement, explaining that they had opposed the surveyor's intervention because the complainant lacked the necessary legal permits to proceed with the land subdivision.

For his part, A. Ndiaye maintained that he held a resolution concerning land zoned for agricultural use, specifying that he had initiated procedures with the town hall to change its zoning to residential. He acknowledged, however, that this administrative authorization process was still underway.

The judge strongly reminded the plaintiff of his obligations, informing him that he was legally prohibited from initiating a subdivision before the official outcome of his request with the municipal services.

Following the requests of the public prosecutor seeking the application of the law, the court of first instance of Thiès has ruled: it has acquitted the village chief of Keur Birima and his four children on the grounds of reasonable doubt.