By Mustapha Jarju
The Drug Law Enforcement Agency of The Gambian (DLEAG) recently arrested and put into custody of one Seedy Camara a serving member of the Gambia Armed Forces (GAF) and ten other suspects at different places across the country for possession of suspected controlled drugs.
The military officer was arrested at Busumbala on the 13th July 2022 with two (2) bundles and ten (10) parcels of suspected cannabis sativa and he is currently in custody while efforts are ongoing to hand him over to the Military Police for the normal process as provided for, in their TACOS and GAFA from where he would be handed over back to the DLEAG for prosecution, said the Anti-Narcotic agency of The Gambia.
In a similar but different developments, a 27 years old Sheikh Omar Hydara was arrested at Brufut on the 15th July 2022 with three (3) big bundles, three (3) parcels and some quantities of suspected cannabis sativa that he claimed he got from a friend residing in Cassamance.
The Agency revealed that the suspect who was in an uncompleted storey building alongside three of his friends jumped from one of the windows of the building in an attempt to evade arrest, therefore, causing harm on himself which was assumed to be a fracture to his leg.
“He was first taken for local treatment where the accused was scanned with a negative result which indicated that there were no fractures or otherwise any damage to his legs,” the Agency noted.
When the operatives asked the alleged suspect, about the reason why he recklessly jumped from the building, the suspect revealed that he was able to identified one of the officers who had previously arrested him. And in the state of panic he felt that the only option was to jump from the building because he knew that his bag contained huge quantities of suspected cannabis sativa. The suspect later confessed ownership of the said drugs and indicated that his colleagues had no knowledge about it.
“These are some of the challenges operatives face on daily basis in pursuit of their daily functions. Some of these suspects under the influence of drugs act in very reckless manner that endanger their lives. The suspect’s action in this case could have resulted in serious injury to him or the outcome could have been unimaginably different,” DLEAG added in its statement.
The Agency also stated that a 53 years old Moth Tambedou, a Senegalese national residing at Tamba in Senegal was also arrested by personnel of The Gambia Police Force at Kerr Moth Ali village on the 14th July 2022 around 21:30 hours GMT onwards with two (2) bundles of suspected cannabis sativa. The means of conveyance was a motorbike.
The Anti-Narcotic operatives also put into custody 18 years old Samba Cham who was found with one (1) parcel of suspected cannabis sativa on the 14 July around 19:33 GMT onwards in Busumbala.
Samba has also been recommended by the DLEAG operatives on his involvement in another case involving four (4) other suspects, who included Babucarr Drammeh, Basiru Fatty, Dembo Marong and Musa Baldeh they were apprehended on the same day around the same time for the possession of thirteen (13) parcels of suspected cannabis sativa in Busumbala.”
The Anti-Narcotic agency further revealed that the operatives also arrested one Sheikh Susso in Tallinding with three wraps of suspected cannabis and Sheka Bangura, a Sierra Leonean National residing at Latrikunda German who was arrested with two (2) parcels and one (1) wrap of suspected cannabis sativa. Another 19 years old Modou Salieu Bah of Old Jeshwang was arrested with one and a half parcel and one wrap of suspected cannabis sativa.