By Tabora Bojang
The United States Department of Justice has filed a denaturalisation case to revoke the citizenship of Babucarr Mboob, a former orderly of former president Yahya Jammeh accusing him of committing “war crimes” and “illegally obtaining his US citizenship by concealing material fact and wilfully misrepresenting his military background”.
In a press release, the US States Department said Mboob, 58, while serving as a military police officer in The Gambia army, participated, along with 15 other soldiers, in the execution of six officers following orders from his commanding officer who believed the victims were plotting a coup against former president Jammeh – all without giving their victims the benefit of a trial.
The State Department added that Mboob “concealed his involvement in war crimes and acts of persecution throughout his immigration and naturalisation proceedings after entering the US in 2002, naturalising as a US citizen in 2011.
But in a testimony before a hearing of The Gambian Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) held on 9th April, 2019, Mr Mboob admitted to executing his six fellow officers.
The case is filed against Mboob and 11 others also accused of serious offences including war crimes, providing material support to a terrorist group and sexually abusing a minor.
Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche, said individuals implicated in committing heinous crimes “should have never been naturalised” as US citizens and vowed that the Trump administration is taking action to correct “these egregious violations” of the US immigration system and “those who intentionally concealed their criminal histories or misrepresented facts during naturalisation process will face the full extent of the law.”
Mboob, a native of Ndungu Kebbeh was enlisted into the army in 1991 before leaving for the US. He told the TRRC that he participated in the killing of Lt Gibril Saye, Lt Buba Jammeh, Lt Bakary Manneh, Cadet Amadou Sillah and Lt Abdoulie Bah but said he could not recall the name of the sixth victim.
