The US Department of Justice has confiscated a $3.5-million mansion acquired from alleged corruption proceeds by the former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh, through a trust set up by his wife, Zineb Jammeh.
It said in a statement on Thursday that this is pursuant to a court-ordered default judgment and final order of forfeiture of the property in Potomac, Maryland, entered on 24 May.
The statement said the judgment is the result of a civil forfeiture complaint filed by the United States in July 2020 seeking the forfeiture of the Maryland property.
It alleged in the complaint that Jammeh “corruptly obtained millions of dollars through the misappropriation of stolen public funds and the solicitation of bribes from businesses seeking to obtain monopoly rights over various sectors of the Gambian economy”.
The statement said the United States intends to sell the property, and recommend to the Attorney General that the net proceeds be used “to benefit the people of The Gambia harmed by former President Jammeh’s acts of corruption and abuse of office”.
The Gambian Government last Wednesday said it had accepted all the recommendations by the Truth Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) with regard to prosecution, notably the prosecution of ex-President Jammeh, for a myriad of crimes committed between 1994 and 2017. He left the country for Equatorial Guinea in 2017 after losing the presidential election in December 2016.
The US said Jammeh conspired with his family members and close associates to utilise a host of shell companies and overseas trusts to launder his alleged corrupt proceeds throughout the world, including through the purchase of the multimillion-dollar mansion in Potomac, Maryland.
“With this entry of final judgment, ownership of that Maryland property has now been forfeited to the United States along with all rental income generated by the property since the filing of the amended complaint in August 2020.”
“The Department of Justice is committed to using the rule of law to forfeit assets traceable to alleged foreign corruption,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
“This case demonstrates our ability to work with foreign partners to secure the forfeiture of assets allegedly derived from illicit bribes and stolen funds despite complex attempts to disguise the proceeds and their intended recipients.”
“Corrupt foreign officials will not be allowed to hide illegal proceeds in Maryland or anywhere else in the United States,” said U.S. Attorney Erek L. Barron for the District of Maryland. “We will use all the tools at our disposal to track down and seek to repatriate those funds.”