By Amadou Jadama
A driver, Buba Bah, has been arraigned before the Brikama magistrate’s court for allegedly causing the death of five people at Jagil village in Foni Bintang District.
Mr Bah is accused of driving a commercial Benz car in a rash and negligent act causing death. He denied the charge.
According to the indictment, the alleged incident occurred on 27 December 2020 at Jagil village in Foni Bintang District in the West Coast Region. “Mr Bah drove vehicle registration number BJL 7871 R in a rash and neglect manner causing death of the following persons: Momdou Lamin Badjie, Fatou Colley, Nyimading Gigaly, Ebo Gomez and Joya Mendy.”
Police prosecuting officer, Cpl 4906 Bangura, applied for an adjournment to enable him to call his witnesses, and he further urged the court to deny the accused person bail. “Your worship, The Gambia is ranked second in the world in terms of road traffic accident and it’s increasing daily. Lots of innocent souls lost their lives to rash and negligent driving. The current death toll of road traffic accidents is more than Covid-19, HIV and Malaria,” Cpl Bangura told the court
He further posited that the investigation into the matter is very far from over as more victims are at various hospitals responding to treatment and their conditions unknown, adding that even the life of the driver is under threat, as many of the family members are still very angry.
“For his personal safety, Your Worship, we urge the court to remand him,” the police prosecutor said.
The trial Magistrate Joof remanded the accused and ordered that he be taken to the hospital for examination.
