A. Diallo, a shoeshine boy by trade, is being prosecuted before the criminal chamber of the Thiès High Court for attempted murder. He is accused of leading 8-year-old ML Aïdara into an unfinished building before stabbing him and attempting to slit his throat. The events took place in April 2022 in the Darou Salam neighborhood of Thiès.

During the preliminary investigation, the accused admitted to having led a boy into an unfinished building, while claiming not to remember the rest of the events, citing a state of intoxication.

In court, the defendant denied the charges. "I was found sitting in an unfinished building. I was drunk. I'm a shoeshine boy and I had my tool bag and a bottle of whiskey with me. People searched my bag and found a bread knife, then they took me to the police. I don't know this kid. It's the first time I've seen him," he explained, specifying that the knife was a work tool.

For his part, the victim, ML Aïdara, formally identified A. Diallo as his attacker. He stated that the accused had intercepted him under the pretext that he was asking for directions to a woman's home. "It was exactly this man who tried to kill me. He led me to an unfinished building, stabbed me in the arm, then knocked me to the ground and began to slit my throat with a bread knife. I screamed, and he ran away," the child recounted.

The child's mother, who joined the proceedings as a civil party and was held civilly liable, argued that her son could have lost his life had the defendant achieved his objective. As such, she claimed two million CFA francs in damages.

For his part, the public prosecutor maintained that the facts were consistent. He noted that the child had formally identified the accused and described the clothes he was wearing, which were found in his room during the investigation. The prosecution also emphasized that the defendant was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the events. Consequently, the prosecutor requested a 10-year prison sentence for A. Diallo.

The defense, led by Mr. Sy, argued that the evidence presented in court was insufficient to secure a conviction against the defendant, A. Diallo. They also emphasized that the accused was not apprehended at the scene of the crime, nor shortly thereafter, which, according to them, weakened the prosecution's case. Indeed, they pleaded for their client's acquittal based on reasonable doubt.

The verdict is scheduled for February 23, 2026.