‘NIA Officers Tortured My Men’

fired NDEA Chief Bun Sanneh

Ebrima Bun Sanneh, former executive director of National Drug Enforcement Agency has told the Special Criminal Division of the High Court in Banjul that National Intelligence officers have tortured his men, anti drug officers for obstructing what was infact in their domain (drug).
“Lamin Kabou, who managed to escape was screaming when he rushed into my office naked, blood all over his body with wounds,” Bun Sanneh told the court yesterday as he defends against multiple charges levied against him.
He is standing trial alongside four former top anti-narcotic officials, Karamo Bojang, his deputy, Ousman Sanneh, operations commander, Seedy  Bojang and Marie Sanneh the only female are facing 30 counts of corruption and drug related charges at high court in Banjul. They all pleaded not guilty.
“They (NIA) were about to kill me” Bun heard Lamin said while on the floor..
He added: “I called Lamin Bo Badjie, then Director General of NIA and informed him, but he hang up the phone.
“After some minutes, Alhajie Morr Jobe and Ebrima Drammeh, all intelligence officers forcefully entered my office. My commander wanted to arrest them, but I intervened.”
Bun further told the court that Alhaji Morr Jobe told him that he was after his prisoner, Lamin Kabou who was still lying on the floor.

Embattled ex-NDEA Chief Bun Sanneh Put up Defence

 

Embattled ex-NDEA Chief Bun Sanneh

Although his ordeal is far from over, the appearance of embattled ex-anti drug chief, who has been widely rumoured dead, was a sigh of relief to the sea of nervous family members and sympathisers.
Appearing in a not-so-bad mental and physical shape, Ibrahim Bun Sanneh, attired in a modest Kaftan showed up at the High Court in Banjul in the escort of state security services from the country’s central prison, Mile Two, where he is being remanded, and where two people came out dead in two weeks.
The former executive director of the National Drug Enforcement Agency (NDEA) is facing multiple criminal charges alongside four of his juniors – Seedy Bojang, his deputy, Ousman Sanneh, operations commander and Mary Sanneh.
The charges against the five former top anti-narcotic agents, who were fired last year in the wake of the saga, include corruption, theft, illegal possession of firearms, drugs, among others. They all pleaded not guilty.
Several witnesses had testified for the state. On Monday, it was Ibrahim Bun Sanneh turn to clear himself of the allegations on which if found guilty, could land them in jail for several years.
According to the former anti-drug chief, at some point during his time as head of the anti drug agency, there was a conflict of interest with the National Intelligence Agency (NIA).
This, he revealed, started when Alhaji Morr Jobe was deployed from the NIA to NDEA as Operations Commander.

Magistrate Fails Promise

Emmanuel Nkea of the Banjul Magistrate’s court Wednesday failed to honour his pledge to grant bail to Karamo Saidy Fatajo as he promised during the previous sitting. 

Karamo Saidy Fatajo, a trader at Albert Market in Banjul is being tried for what the state called, ‘breaching the peace’ by saying that Senegal will attack The Gambia after Gambia government branded Senegalese president, Abdoulie Wade enemy, accusing Wade of engaging in a smear campaign against The Gambia.



The saga came hard on the heels of mounting allegations in Senegal and beyond linking The Gambia to the controversial arms shipment seized in Nigeria from UN-sanctioned Iran.



Fatajo was arrested last month and his lawyer Lamin LK Mboge who has been pushing to secure him bail gestured in a manner observed to be a surprised at the magistrate’s decision to disallow his client to re-join his family until next hearing.



Meanwhile, Mr Fatajo’s fellow trader at Banjul Albert Market who admitted reporting him to the police told the court that he is aware there is freedom of speech, but subjected to the law.



Mboge however put it to the witness that the accused was just analyzing the Secretary General’s speech and exchanging ideas but Mr Musa Ceesay, the witness insisted that Mr Fatajo was expressing ‘bad opinion.’



The witness denied abusing the accused when Mboge asked but only confronted him as saying ‘nonsense’. He said he has no personal relationship with the accused person and cannot remember when he last talked to him.

"I always greet him whenever I find him sitting and that does not leave anyone out," he said.



mans falls victims as a result of the
 alleged Gambia-bound controversial arms
shipment seized in Nigeria

Mr Mboge however accused the witness of roaming the market and not concentrating on his business but the witness responded that he was the chairman of the Albert market and could go anywhere he wanted within the market.



The witness told the court that he wouldn’t know what the accused was discussing with one Yaya Trawally about the SG’s speech before he arrived at the scene because he was not a ‘saint’. Mboge put it to him that they were just exchanging ideas but the witness said that was not true.

"You told the court that you are not a saint. How can you know that" Mboge stressed.



"I don’t know" said the witness.

The case resumes January 12