By Baba Sillah
Justice Zainab Jawara-Alami of the Banjul High Court yesterday issued a bench warrant against one Oumie Saffiatou Jallow for her failure to appear before the court on several occasions to answer to charges.
Ms Jallow is being tried along with Mansa Bah, Ousman Sowe, Kemo Fatty, Sheikh Dawda Yorke, Alpha Kantè and Abdou Camara for conspiring to deceive Muhammed Tunkara, a Gambian based in the UK and his partner by collecting US$161,000 equivalent to D6, 273, 000 from them on the pretext of selling 50kg of gold valued at US$1.5 million to them. They denied the charges.
Ms Jallow was earlier granted bail but has since failed to appear before the court to answer to the charges filed against since 2015.
When the case resumed yesterday for hearing, neither Ms Jallow nor her sureties were present prompting the trial judge to issue the bench warrant for her arrest.
The judge also issued a summon for her sureties to appear before the court to show cause why bail bond should not be forfeited before finally adjourned the case to October 5.
Meanwhile, in a related development, the sister case which involved the Gambia Democratic Congress National Assembly Member for Niamina West, Demba Sowe has now been transferred to Justice Simone Abi who previously presided over the case. Honourable Sowe was spotted at the court premises yesterday. Mr Sowe has earlier told The Standard that he has never appeared before any court when contacted and vowed to clear his name when the case resumed any time while described the allegation as “a plot against [him by his] political opponents”.
