By Kemeseng Sanneh (Kexx)
The civil suit over 19 kilograms of allegedly stolen gold at Banjul International Airport advanced on Tuesday as police submitted CCTV footage said to show how the gold disappeared. Assistant Superintendent of Police Omar Jabang, from the fraud investigations unit, presented the video at the Kanifing High Court as ordered by Justice G.A. Kwabeng. Businessmen Alagie Jabbi and Mustapha Jabbie, known as Jabbi Brothers, are suing airport authorities and several staff over the missing gold, which they say was worth $1,040,000. They claim the gold was bought in Mali, cleared through customs, and was being taken to Dubai by Mustapha Jabbie for sale when it went missing. Upon arrival in Dubai, the suitcase was found empty, prompting an investigation and request for CCTV footage. The footage reportedly shows scanning officer Ndey Fatou Gaye flagging the bag and calling her supervisor Ebrima Jobarteh, who arrived with Alimatou Riley. Later, Babanding Kanyi is seen removing the suitcase from the belt with Ismaila Baldeh and Omar Jarju nearby. Kanyi allegedly moved the bag to a blind spot, took out the inner suitcase containing the gold, and handed the gold to Buba Bojang, who then left the airport with it. Others accused of helping include Bakary Sanno, Fatou Bojang, and Ismaila Baldeh. The defendants include Gambia International Airlines, Gambia Civil Aviation Authority, Euro Africa Airlines Security, and 11 individuals. The Jabbi Brothers are demanding full compensation for the gold, D3 million in damages, D90,000 for legal costs, and interest. During Tuesday’s hearing, their lawyer Kebba Sanyang said they intended to submit another video showing the gold during testing but asked for a delay as the person who conducted the test was unavailable. The Civil Aviation defense team objected to the adjournment, saying the plaintiffs had caused past delays, but the judge postponed the case to June 19, 2025, for trial to begin.
