Court to Rule on ‘No Case’ Submission in NIA trial

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Justice Kumba Sillah-Camara

By Nelson Manneh

The Banjul High Court presided over by Justice Kumba Sillah-Camara is set to rule on the ‘no case submission’ made by the lawyer for the former Director of Operations.

The ruling came about after Lawyer Kenedy and Prosecutor Antouman Gaye adopted their briefs of argument with regards to the ‘no case submission’.

Sheik Omar Jeng, an Ex-Director of Operations of the NIA is charged together with 8 other former Intelligent Chiefs on twenty-five criminal counts including murder, torture, and conspiracy to commit felony among other felonious charges.

‘No case to answer’ submission is the submission by the defence that the prosecution has no evidence, or lacks sufficient legal grounds, to make a case for the defendant (accused person) to show to be false.

The accused persons in this criminal trial are; Yankuba Badjie, an ex-director of the NIA, Sheikh Omar Jeng, an ex-director of operations at the NIA, Baboucar Sallah, Haruna Suso, Tamba Mansareh, Lamin Darboe, and Lamin Lang Sanyang. Louise Gomez, an ex-deputy director of the said agency, died in Government custody, during the course of the trial. However, Yusupha Jammeh was discharged by the High Court, upon the State’s application for his release for lack of sufficient evidence to prosecute him.