By: Kemo Kanyi
The Gambia Police Force reported that it has made significant progress in its investigation into recent armed robberies in Banjul and Access Bank in Brusubi, leading to the arrests of the suspects in the Gambia and Guinea Bissau respectively.
GPF said a case of armed robbery was reported to the Banjul Police Station involving an attack on El Hella Shop, located on Hegan Street, Banjul, at approximately 09:08 hrs on Saturday. It added that the complainant, Muhammed Seedy Hydra of Brikama, told the police that he had travelled to Banjul with D1,245, 000.00 and 1,650, 000.00 CFA to purchase goods.
“Upon arrival, he noticed a BMW, ash in colour, with no number plate, parked opposite the shop. Moments after entering, two armed individuals stormed the shop, held him at gunpoint, and forcefully took the cash before fleeing the scene. Following the robbery, the suspects abandoned the vehicle in Banjul and used a commercial vehicle to escape to Sting Corner, where they divided the stolen money,” the Gambia Police Force said in a statement obtained by this medium.
“Through intensive investigations, police arrested the suspects, Ousainou Jobarteh, an Ivorian national residing in Busumbala, was apprehended in the early morning of Sunday, February 9, 2025. Officers recovered D70, 250 and 465, 000 CFA from him. During interrogation, he admitted to conspiring with Abdoulie Jallow, a 24-year-old resident of Barra, and used his BMW with registration number BJL 4871B to execute the operation. He further disclosed that Amadou Wurry Jallow, a mechanic, was instructed to drive the vehicle out of Banjul for maintenance and repainting to conceal evidence. The vehicle was later identified and intercepted at Bond Road at about 21:00 hrs,” the police command explained.
Later that day, GPF added that it has arrested Abdoulie Jallow along with his girlfriend, Bella James, at Sere Kunda Villa around 16:30 GMT, stating that during the search, officers recovered D198, 000 from Jallow. Additionally, his Wave account contained D24, 000, but no CFA currency was recovered from him.
After the operation, the stolen money was divided among the suspects. Ousainou Jobarteh admitted to entrusting D70,250 and 465,000 CFA to his wife, Tida Nyang, while giving her an additional D3,000 for personal use.
He further revealed that he handed over D304,000 to Odile Secka, a female resident of Banjul, bringing the total money entrusted to third parties to D377,250 and 465,000 CFA.
In a separate case, the police said the authorities in Guinea-Bissau have arrested Ansumana Jarju, a Gambian national, in connection with the Access Bank robbery in Brusubi, adding that the suspect has been handed over to The Gambia Police Force through security bilateral, to ensure his swift extradition and prosecution.
Police have recovered firearms and other incriminating evidence, further strengthening the case against the arrested individuals. Investigators are working to determine whether the suspects are linked to other armed robberies in the country. The guns recovered from the Banjul robbery will be taken to ballistic examinations to determine the specifics and types, lethal or non-lethal,” it stated.
