Lamin Jobateh, former justice minister |
High Court in Banjul
has released the former justice minister on bail to the tune of D3
million with two Gambian sureties.Jobarteh has moved one step toward
his freedom.The former minister has spend several week behind bars until
his bail yesterday.
Lamin
Jobarteh was indicted yesterday July, 24, with fresh charges ranging
from giving false information, economic crime, abuse of office,
wrongfully retaking possession of land, forcible entry and operating a
business without license before Justice Emmanuel Nkea of the Special
Criminal Division.
He
is accused of ordering and assisting the arrest and detention of Alieu
Barry and Bernd Geoge Diedrich and also Mustapha Kanyi and Yerro Jamanka
at Bansag police station.
As the minister and Attorney General, Jobarteh said
to recklessly and willfully caused monetary loss to the Gambia Revenue
Authority by constituting a task force, and informed the office of the
president that over D200 million had been recovered from tax defaulters
and deposited in the GRA Recovery Account with the GT Bank, knowing same
to be false.
The
charges further accused Jobarteh of giving false information to the
commissioner general of GRA, that there was a cabinet approval to
establish a task force to re-assess the tax liabilities of defaulters
shown in the tax commission report.
Indictments
also reveals that Jobarteh being a Gambia citizen breach the provisions
of the licenses Act by failing to register his lodge as require by law
purposes of taxation, and also operated a lode of 18 rooms without
licenses.
He pleaded not guilty to all the charges
Lawyer
Lamin Camara, after the plea of the accused made a bail application
citing the criminal procedure code and the constitution but prosecutor
Maurice B. Agiah made an objection.
However,
the judge said there is no likelihood of the accused interfering with
witnesses as the investigations are over according to the prosecutor.
“Since
this court is a court of justice, I hereby grant the accused bail to
the sum of three million dalasi,” said Nkea. He further order the
accused to surrender all his travelling documents and report to the
Yundum police on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Trial continues.
Author: By Binta A Bah
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