Gamilo
Hadem, a Portuguese national, was recently convicted and sentenced to a fine of
D10,000 in default to serve 6 months in prison with hard labour by principal
Magistrate Hilary Abeke of the Brikama Magistrates’ Court, for being in
possession of a fake document.
When the charge sheet was read to the accused, he pleaded guilty.
At that juncture, the police prosecutor adopted the facts as per the charge sheet.
The accused person then begged the court to temper justice with mercy, as he is a Portuguese national, adding that his father and children are in Portugal
He said he paid a lot of money to obtain a residential permit, and he did not know it was a fake document because it was sent to him by someone in Europe.
Passing the sentence, the presiding magistrate told the court that the offence the accused person committed was a serious one, and the accused person should be convicted upon his own plea of guilt.
He said the court would temper justice with mercy on him, because the accused person had shown respect to the court hence the court should also consider the mitigation plea of the accused person.
It would be recalled that the accused, Gamilo Dadem, on 19 November 2015 at Banjul International Airport, was found in possession of a Portuguese residential permit No: 743692 and Guinea Bissau passport No: C 0018609 with intent to travel to Holland via Spain.