By Nelson Manneh
Rapper Killa Ace and six others who were remanded by a Magistrate’s Court in Kanifing, following a protest in July, were on Thursday granted bail by the High Court in Banjul.
Lawyer Antouman A.B. Gaye applied for the seven defendants to be granted bail either unconditionally or with reasonable conditions.
A.M Yusuph, the Principal State Counsel said he had no objection to the application and was therefore leaving it to the court to deal with it.
Justice Basiru V.P. Mahoney ruled that the charges against the accused persons were not yet read before the court. He went on to grant them bail. The bail conditions state each of the accused persons should deposit their travelling documents and deposit a sum of one hundred thousand dalasi to the registrar of the High Court and produce two Gambian sureties.
The 7 defendants were arraigned before a lower court in Kanifing and were remanded pending their appearance before the high court on the basis that the subordinate court lacks jurisdiction to hear charges on arson, demolishing buildings and related offences. They were remanded together with 30 others who were released earlier this week after the State withdrew charges against them.
Their arrest and arraignment before the Kanifing Magistrate’s Court came in the wake of the 24th July mass demonstration over the death of Ousman Darboe, a vendor at the Serrekunda Market.
The Bakoteh police station and the house of Assistant Commissioner of Police, Gorgi Mboob were set ablaze during the riot. The police also alleged that one of their vehicles was vandalized by the rioters.
