US-based Gambian rights advocate, Omar Sambou, popularly known as Malmo Junior, who stood firmly and consistently in defense of Ousainou Bojang and his sister Amie Bojang, has been vindicated following their acquittal by Justice Ebrima Jaiteh of the High Court of Banjul on Monday.
The ruling brings an end to a high-profile criminal trial that stemmed from the fatal shooting of Police Intervention Unit (PIU) officers at the Sukuta-Jabang Traffic Lights, Constable Pateh Jallow and Sang J. Gomez, in the month of September 2023, leaving the third victim, Ansey Jawo seriously wounded.
Sambou, from the early days of the case, has remained unwavering in his position, that, the accounts given by senior state security officers were inconsistent and intended to implicate who he has on multiple occasions described as an “innocent” person.
The shooting incident, which left many Gambians shocked, led to the arrest and charging of Ousainou Bojang, the principal suspect, later extended to the charging of Amie Bojang who was accused of being an accessory after the fact.
Although the State has presented 13 witnesses, including the National Security Adviser Abubakarr Suleiman Jeng, Sambou maintained that the prosecution’s case against the Bojang siblings was not credible, persistently calling for intense scrutiny.
Justice Ebrima Jaiteh today granted a bail of D50,000 each or one Gambian surety to Ousainou and Amie after their acquittals, though the State later said it intends to appeal the ruling under Sections 382 and 325 of the country’s Criminal Procedure Act.
Jaiteh ruled that the State has failed to provide sufficient evidence linking the case to the accused persons, warning the state of relying on weak or uncorroborated testimonies in serious criminal matters.