Jimmy Thoronka and his late Mother and her grave (in photo above)
Since UK News outlet the Guardian; broke the story about Sierra Leone sprinter, Jimmy Thoronka (the young man who ‘absconded' and stayed in the UK after the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland) there has been several speculations and counter claims about the statements he made to the Guardian reporter and UK authorities.
The most recent of a counter claim, came from the Secretary General of the Sierra Leone National Olympic Committee, Mr. Joseph Nyande who in an interview with BBC Stringer Umaru Fofanah said the sprinter was lying about pretty much everything he said, especially the fact that his parents were dead.
The Secretary General of the NOC’s claim was particularly in response to a statement the sprinter who was arrested on Friday March 6th 2015 following the Guardian Websites report; made, that he was afraid to return home to Sierra Leone because his family had been wiped out by the deadly Ebola virus.
Since UK News outlet the Guardian; broke the story about Sierra Leone sprinter, Jimmy Thoronka (the young man who ‘absconded' and stayed in the UK after the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland) there has been several speculations and counter claims about the statements he made to the Guardian reporter and UK authorities.
The most recent of a counter claim, came from the Secretary General of the Sierra Leone National Olympic Committee, Mr. Joseph Nyande who in an interview with BBC Stringer Umaru Fofanah said the sprinter was lying about pretty much everything he said, especially the fact that his parents were dead.
The Secretary General of the NOC’s claim was particularly in response to a statement the sprinter who was arrested on Friday March 6th 2015 following the Guardian Websites report; made, that he was afraid to return home to Sierra Leone because his family had been wiped out by the deadly Ebola virus.
In my investigation to get to the truth of the matter about the Secretary Generals’ claim and what Jimmy said in London, I went to find out myself about the facts, and according to the 20 year old sprinter’s next door neighbour, Musu Sennesie, Thoronka’s adopted mother who was a nurse working for the Sierra Leone police force; Jelikatu Kargbo (in photo above next to Jimmy)- passed-away last year and records shows that Ebola was the cause.
Police sources also confirmed that the late Nurse Kargbo was working at the Kingtom Police Hospital in Freetown, where she contracted the Ebola virus from a patient and was later admitted at the Rokupa Hospital where she passed away.
I took a tour to her graveside and it indeed shows Jelikatu Kargbo’s grave number 1140 and that along with other medical documents proves that she did pass away from an infection from the deadly virus a fact that the Sierra Leone Athletic Association’s technical director; Harold Palmer, also confirmed.
“Jimmy has no one left to take care of him here. If they were alive he would not be in the situation he is in now. He would have returned home because he is a kid who is very passionate about his family especially after losing his biological parents some time back,” Palmer said.
The statements of Palmer along with facts gathered thus far by us here at Songhai Sports clearly refutes the claim by the NOC-SL Scribe who told the BBC; “I know he has parents here. I don't think there is anything wrong with his parents,” he intimated, clearly claiming that the sprinter was lying.
Police sources also confirmed that the late Nurse Kargbo was working at the Kingtom Police Hospital in Freetown, where she contracted the Ebola virus from a patient and was later admitted at the Rokupa Hospital where she passed away.
I took a tour to her graveside and it indeed shows Jelikatu Kargbo’s grave number 1140 and that along with other medical documents proves that she did pass away from an infection from the deadly virus a fact that the Sierra Leone Athletic Association’s technical director; Harold Palmer, also confirmed.
“Jimmy has no one left to take care of him here. If they were alive he would not be in the situation he is in now. He would have returned home because he is a kid who is very passionate about his family especially after losing his biological parents some time back,” Palmer said.
The statements of Palmer along with facts gathered thus far by us here at Songhai Sports clearly refutes the claim by the NOC-SL Scribe who told the BBC; “I know he has parents here. I don't think there is anything wrong with his parents,” he intimated, clearly claiming that the sprinter was lying.
By: Sahr Morris Jr. in Freetown
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