As the cross-examination process proceeds, Counsel Lamin J. Darboe, the lawyer for Ousainou Bojang (the first accused), has sent over the phone logs of Mama Jabbi, the third prosecution witness.
The marabout and entrepreneur Mama Jabbi confirmed her involvement in helping the police apprehend Ousainou Bojang at the prior court appearance. Bojang is charged with the murder of two officers from the Police Intervention Unit (PIU) at the Sukuta Jabang traffic lights.
Attorney LJ Darboe reported to the court that although he had Mama Jabbi’s call logs from Africell already, he still needs to get hold of the Qcell call logs.
Through Africell data analyst Abubacarr Jallow, Counsel LJ Darboe submitted the documents to the court.
The state’s representative, Counsel AM Yusuf, Director of Public Prosecution, noted that the document is computer-generated and underlined that it must be accompanied by a certificate in accordance with Section 22 of the Evidence Act.
“The Evidence Act’s Section 22 is quite clear when it comes to computer-generated documents, as the document itself makes clear,” DPP Yusuf said the court.
In response, the presiding judge, Hon. Justice Ebrima Jaiteh, said that a certificate was not necessary for the document, which came from a witness who had been subpoenaed.
“The majority of the papers that are used in court these days are produced by computers. These are the witness’s call logs. We don’t need to spend time on this, in my opinion. The Evidence Act’s computer reference refers to papers that are produced by computers and include computations.
On this text, however, there is no computation. Only the witness’s phone logs are included. Even our charge sheets would be considered computer-generated if this were to be classified as such. Hon. Justice Jaiteh said, “This cannot be classified as a computer-generated document; otherwise, we would have to treat all court documents as computer-generated documents.”
As a result, the paper was accepted as evidence by Hon. Justice Jaiteh, who also marked it as a court document (C1).
Subsequently, the presiding judge gave defense attorney LJ Darboe instructions to start Mama Jabbi’s cross-examination.
Counsel LJ Darboe continued the cross-examination by asking whether Mama Jabbi had given a statement to the police when she arrived from Jululung with the first accused.Mama Jabbi told the court she didn’t remember the precise day she gave a statement to the police at the Anti-Crime Unit. According to her statement, she gave the police her name, home address in Sukuta, employment status as a housewife, and two phone numbers. Mama Jabbi did admit, nevertheless, that she did not remember phone numbers when Counsel LJ Darboe read her the two numbers that were given in her police statement.
“You stated that you are 36 years old.” Attorney LJ Darboe enquired of Mama Jabbi.
Mama Jabbi said, “I may have given that, but I cannot remember.” Mama Jabbi said she had given the police her statement, which she had signed with her thumbprint. LJ Darboe, the defense attorney, then asked for the presentation of Mama Jabbi’s initial statement so that it may be used as a defense evidence during the trial. In response to Justice Jaiteh’s question, DPP Yusuf said that he did indeed have the original copy of Mama Jabbi’s statement. Next, DPP Yusuf showed the original copy of Mama Jabbi’s declaration. The statement was entered into evidence by Justice Jaiteh, who also designated it as defense exhibit D3.
Mama Jabbi continued her evidence under cross-examination, saying that at around 2:00 pm, Ousainou Bojang, the first accuse, approached her. She told the court that she took a picture of Ousainou Bojang and that she also videotaped their conversation.
When asked whether she recorded the whole exchange with Ousainou Bojang, Mama Jabbi said that she went outside to make a phone call after the first accused told her he had committed a murder.
Counsel Darboe questioned Mama Jabbi, “So you didn’t record that part where he allegedly told you that he killed someone?”
At that point, he informed me he had murdered someone. Mama Jabbi said, “It’s on the audio that was captured.
“Are you carrying that audio?” Attorney LJ Darboe questioned Mama Jabbi once again.
“After I came back, I was abused so much that I had to erase everything from my WhatsApp account—aside from the messages I exchanged with certain people,” Mama Jabbi repeated.
When questioned whether she knew that the aforementioned recording was widely available online by Counsel LJ Darboe, Mama Jabbi said that it was conceivable but she was unaware of it.
“I’m telling you that audio is available everywhere on the Internet. Counsel LJ Darboe said to Mama Jabbi, “But why don’t you go to the Internet and bring it to the court since it’s your recording?”
Mama Jabbi said she could get the audio tape by calling or by using the internet.
LJ Darboe, the defense attorney, asked Ousainou Bojang, the first accused, what time she specifically asked to use her phone.
“He asked to use my phone to call his older sister at the time he confessed to killing someone.” I told him I didn’t have any phone credit,” Mama Jabbi told the judge.
Mama Jabbi said in court that she phoned Musa Camara, a member of the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA), after Ousainou Bojang reportedly confessed to her that he murdered police officers. When Counsel LJ Darboe questioned Mama Jabbi throughout the trial about her knowledge of Musa Camara’s marriage, Mama Jabbi gave a positive answer.
“How many times in the previous six months did you meet Musa Camara?” Attorney LJ Darboe enquired of Mama Jabbi.
Mama Jabbi said, “The day I caught the accused, I called Musa Camara. We met at Giboro. He came with the Police, and we went to Jululung.”
“So, in the past six months, you met him twice instead of just once?” Attorney LJ Darboe questioned Mama Jabbi once again.
“The day I traveled to Jululung with Musa Camara was the day we met at Giboro. Mama jabbi said, “And we went to the Anti Crime Unit where I gave my statement.”
Lawyer LJ Darboe asked whether Mama Jabbi had made touch with Musa Camara’s wife before contacting Musa directly. Mama Jabbi affirmed, saying that Musa had in fact answered the phone after she had phoned Musa’s wife. Mama Jabbi also disclosed to the court that she knew the wife of Musa Camara.
Counsel LJ Darboe questioned Mama Jabbi, saying, “In your statement, you told the court that you left the Gambia on August 12th, 2023 for Dakar, Senegal.”
Mama Jabbi claimed to have informed the police that on a Tuesday, she left the Gambia and arrived in Jululung at approximately two in the morning.
Counsel LJ Darboe informed the witness, “In fact, based on your statement, which is exhibit D3, you were outside the Gambia from August 12th, 2023, up until the end of August, you were outside the country.”
Mama Jabbi said in court, “I am not educated, so I forgot and can’t remember.”
Counsel LJ Darboe informed the witness, “Based on your call logs from August 17 to August 25, 2023, you were in the Gambia here and you didn’t go anywhere.”
Mama Jabbi still insisted on her ignorance, blaming it on a memory lapse.
Counsel LJ Darboe informed Mama Jabbi, “I am putting it to you that you only crossed the border at Basori on September 10, 2023, and disappeared for two days no one knows about your whereabouts and all of a sudden, you surfaced in Senegal on September 12th, 2023.”
Mama Jabbi told the court that Counsel LJ Darboe’s claim was untrue and just an opinion based on his interpretation of the facts.
Counsel LJ Darboe responded by making it clear that the information was based on Mama Jabbi’s phone records with Africell rather than being an opinion.
“On September 10, 2023, you were in Basori from four to five o’clock in the evening. Counsel LJ Darboe informed Mama Jabbi, “I am putting it to you that on September 11 and 12, 2023, you made no calls because you were not in the Gambia.
Mama Jabbi informed the judge that she was unaware of Counsel LJ Darboe’s words.
Mama Jabbi told the court that on September 13, 2023, the day Ousainou Bojang, the first accused, was captured and sent to the Gambia, she was in Brufut.
Counsel LJ Darboe questioned Mama Jabbi, saying, “At 21:22 you were at Brufut Junction, where the home of the 1st accused (Ousainou Bojang) is situated.”
“I didn’t visit that place,” Mama Jabbi said in court.
“However, you only stated to the judge that you were present without getting out of the car?” LJ Darboe, the counsel, questioned the witness.
Mam Jabbi said, “I was talking about the day we came from Jululung.”
Counsel LJ Darboe informed Mama Jabbi, “According to exhibit C1, your call records, you were at Brufut Junction at 21:22 on the 13th of September 2023.” “That isn’t who I am,” Mama Jabbi said.
Then, Counsel LJ Darboe told her that the phone records revealed she had gone to Old Yundum instead of Sukuta, as she had claimed to have traveled from Brufut Junction. On the other hand, Mama Jabbi denied ever visiting Yundum.
Counsel LJ Darboe informed Mama Jabbi, “Based on your call logs, you were at Old Yundum at 23:28 on September 13, 2023, the day the first accused was apprehended.”
“I don’t recall,” Mama Jabbi said.
Counsel LJ Darboe informed Mama Jabbi, “In actuality, you spent the night at Old Yundum; at 6am, you were still at Old Yundum.”
“I stayed the night in Old Yundum the night Ousainou Bojang was taken because it was late at night and it was my first time there. I was being insulted, and I felt intimidated, so I decided not to return home. Shortly after refuting claims that she visited Old Yundum, Mama Jabbi told the court, “I spent the night at Old Yundum because I was receiving insults from all social media platforms.”
“Is the phone number that begins with 382**** that you provided to the police registered under your name? Attorney LJ Darboe enquired.
“They gave it to someone later, and I wasn’t using it. I use it only on WhatsApp, Mama Jabbi said the judge.
“I am asserting to you that it is untrue. Because Musa Camara’s name is on file for that number, Attorney LJ Darboe informed Mama Jabbi.
“I was aware of it as my Qcell number instead of Musa Camara. Mama Jabbi said, “I’m talking about my Qcell number, not someone else’s.
The case was then postponed by Hon. Justice Jaiteh to December 4, 2023, so that cross-examination may continue.
Context of the Case
When Ousainou and Amie Bojang first appeared in front of Principal Magistrate Omar Jabang of the Kanifing Magistrates’ Court on September 21, 2023, they were charged with crimes pertaining to the shooting incident at Sukuta Jabang Traffic Lights, which on September 12, 2023, claimed the lives of two PIU officers and seriously injured another.
At first, the accused was facing four accusations from the police: two counts of murder, one count of terrorism, and one count of accessory after the fact to murder. The murder trial was then moved to the Special Criminal Division of the High Court of The Gambia by Principal Magistrate Omar Jabang.
The matter was brought before Hon. Justice Ebrima Jaiteh of the Gambia High Court on October 12, 2023.
Six charges and one charge were filed by the State on October 19, 2023, against Ousainou Bojang, the main suspect in the killings of two Police Intervention Unit (PIU) officers, and his older sister, Amie Bojang.
Ousainou and Amie Bojang filed not guilty pleas to the charges on October 24, 2023.