Mbye Njie, ex-director of operations at the National Drug
Enforcement Agency (NDEA), yesterday opened his defence at the Banjul
Magistrates’ Court before Principal Magistrate Tawio Ade Alagbe.
Mbye Njie is being tried on a four-count charge which included official corruption and abuse of office.
Njie told the court that he resides in Sinchu Sorry, in the West Coast Region, and was a narcotics officer attached to the NDEA, as director of operations.
He said in 2010, he received his letter of promotion from the Personnel Management Office (PMO) in Banjul.
He revealed that on 19 July 2012, he was picked up from his office and taken straight to the court and, from the court, they took him straight to Mile 2 Central Prison.
“On 20 July 2012, I received a letter of interdiction from the agency,” he said.
The said letter was tendered as defence exhibit.
However, he said he received his dismissal letter when he was at Mile 2 Central Prison.
Asked by his counsel L.K. Mboge, whether he could remember what happened between April and July 2012, and whether he knew Sarjo Jallow, Bakary Jammeh, Sheriff Sanyang and Saikou-Ba Jammeh, Njie told the court that he could remember, as they were his colleagues at the agency.
He said he was aware that he was standing trial for the offence of official corruption, abuse of office, among others, and he denied the charges.
Njie further stated that he knew PW2, Bakary Jammeh prior to the case, noting that Saikou-Ba Jammeh and Sheriff Sanyang came to his office informing him that PW2 took D8,000 from somebody for the purpose of settling a drug case in Banjul.
He added that when he was brought to his office, his instruction was for him to return the complainant’s money or the case file would be prepared against him, and he was in the cell for a few days.
Later Saikou-Ba Jammeh alone went to his office and informed him that the suspect had paid D5,000 and he released him on bail, adding that he did not know whether he ended up paying.
Njie added that PW2 was later arrested by Njaka, and placed him in cell for three days at Bundung, and that he also had another encounter with him when he was in Serekunda police station, as station officer for the NDEA.
“I personally arrested him on a similar offence and I placed him in a cell. The case file was prepared and I left for a peacekeeping mission,” he told the court.
He denied that PW2, Bakary Jammeh, ever gave him D15,000 for settling a case or for the bail process, as well as denied that PW2 gave him another D5,000 to release Sarjo Jallowon bail.
“I did not bail suspects, but instead the authority through consultations,” he said.
He said regarding PW1, Saikou-ba Jammeh, all what he had said was not true, adding that PW1 had so many criminal records at the agency.
He added that PW1 was recently demoted from the rank of Inspector to corporal, which was due to his corrupt practices.
He said the most recent case was taking money from the drug dealers by making an agreement with them, and whenever the team was going for them he would just call to tell them that the team was coming for them.
He added that PW1 was working directly under him for the past six years and, during his first case, he was not in the country, but when he was here, anything he did, he would report him to the then deputy DG, Kalilu Njie verbally.
Njie added that PW1 was fond of taking money for settling cases, and in a particular case of one Pap Manneh, Manneh reported that PW1 always goes to his compound to collect money from him.
He added that PW1 was charged under the disciplinary code of the NDEA and that warranted his demotion, and this had been published in the Force Order and that all the commanding officers get copies of the Force Order.
The case was then adjourned till 20 September 2012.
