Fishing Trawler Captain still detained at Mile 2

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By Muhammed Sailu Bah Ebenezer Noumo Justice, a Ghanaian national who is the captain of a fishing trawler, is still reported to be detained at the Mile 2 Prison for 11 days now.Mr. Justice was said to be arrested and subsequently detained onThursday, 25 June 2015, at the Mile Two central prison in the outskirts of the capital, Banjul, according to a source. A colleague of the captain said they have been making efforts to talk with the authorities concerning his release but that is yet to materialise. The source further told this reporter that since Mr. Justice’s arrest and detention, they have been taking food for him at the Prison on a daily basis. He, however, explained that they are presently in a very difficult situation due to the fact that they cannot move with the fishing trawler back to Senegal because it is being held by the Gambian Navy at the fishing jetty at ‘Wharfi Njago’ in Banjul. Earlier, it was reported that the captain of the trawler is working for a Chinese company called Fuyuang Yu 120 which is based in neighbouring Republic of Senegal. The captain’s colleague said they normally come to Gambian waters for fishing as well as other countries along the coast of the countries in the sub region. He also explained that the captain, who was lodging in a motel, was invited on Monday, 22 June, 2015 by the Marine Commander and that he spent the night there. He said on the following day, Tuesday, the captain was taken to the Police headquarters in Banjul where he was detained until Thursday, 25 June, 2015 before being transferred to Mile 2 prison. Efforts to reach the Police Spokesperson on the phone over the weekend were unsuccessful. However, when he was contacted earlier, ASP David Kujabi, the Police Public Relation Officer, told Foroyaa that he was not aware of the arrest and subsequent detention of the captain of the fishing trawler at Mile 2. He said the Police do not arrest people and then take them to Mile 2 just like that without going through the court. Foroyaa will continue with efforts to contact him further on this issue.]]>