State House, Fajara Barrack Spy Photos Tendered in Court

The reported spy photographs of sensitive Gambian security installations such as those of State House, Fajara Barracks and the GRTS premises, allegedly taken by the nine suspected MFDC rebels, were yesterday produced and tendered before the Banjul Magistrates Court as exhibits.

Testifying before Magistrate B.Y. Camara, PW3 Samba Gajaga told the court that he is a Security Investigating Officer working for a security agency. He said he knew the accused persons, especially the 1st accused Sadat Jarju, adding that he played a role in the investigation of the case.

He said he was part of the panel and the investigating team that looked into the activities of the accused persons. He said during the course of the investigation he was in charge of all the recovered items found with the accused persons under his custody.

PW3 further stated that he also witnessed the arrest and search of the accused. He said the third accused, Nuha Jammeh, was the first person to be arrested and taken to Wellingara Police Station. He added that after the arrest of Nuha Jammeh, Sadat Jarju went to the latter’s house and collected some items including money, a record book, a laptop, military outfit and Gambian ID card. He added that they also found a Gambian map, an Olympus camera, a DT125 motorbike and mobile phones.

He also told the court that during the arrest of the first accused, Sidat Jarju, they recovered 7,800,000 CFA and D1,000 euros from him.

He said the camera was found loaded with some developed film consisting of 27 photographs in the presence of the first accused.

He adduced that after verifying the photos they discovered that some of the photos were of combat scenes in the bush involving the accused persons, and of the security installations at the State House, Fajara barracks and both the former and present GRTS premises.

PW3 added that they also recovered a report of Sidat Jarju’s mission to Conakry and a report of Abdou Salam Jammeh’s (the eighth accused’s) mission to Free Town and fraudulent conversion.

He said a Gambian passport bearing the name of Abdou Salam Jammeh, 36,000 CFA francs and D50 were also recovered from the second accused, Ebrima Colley, adding that a bullet cartridge was also among the items discovered during the course of the investigation.

He said that the mobile phones were taken to Gamcel to establish if the accused persons used them to communicate within and outside the country, noting that a result was issued to this effect.

The matter was at that point adjourned to February 6th.