During his testimony before Justice O. Cham of the High Court, the witness first presented before the court monies allegedly recovered from the accused persons, together with pistols and ammunition purportedly used in the robbery.
Before ruling on the admissibility of the recovered items, the trial judge sought the presence of the court registrar to confirm the amount and take custody of the exhibits. However, it was brought to the court’s attention that there were storage issues.
Justice O. Cham subsequently adjourned the matter to tomorrow to secure the presence of all relevant parties, including the police, in order to determine how the exhibits could be stored properly, judiciously, and in accordance with the law.
Led in evidence by State Counsel M.D. Mballow, Superintendent Saidykhan further testified that monies in CFA and Dalasi amounting to D575,250.00 and CFA 1,235,000 were recovered from the accused persons on the day following the incident.
The two accused are facing three charges: conspiracy to commit a felony, robbery with violence and possession of firearms without lawful authority.
The witness further told the court that searches were conducted in the residences of both accused persons, including the wife of the second accused Losseni Diabate, from whom a significant amount of money was recovered. Additional sums were also recovered from the first accused, Abdoulie Jallow and his girlfriend.
The witness stated that since the recovery, the money has been kept in the custody of investigators at the Serious Crime Unit in Banjul, pending its tendering before the court along with two pistols and ammunition allegedly recovered from the accused persons.
The Dalasi, CFA, and two pistols were brought before the court in two bags. The prosecution applied to tender the recovered money together with four brown boxes: two boxes each containing a black pistol, and two others containing 9mm pistol magazines, 13 cartridges, and two empty shells.
Continuing his testimony, the witness was questioned about a BMW vehicle earlier mentioned in court. He told the court that investigations revealed that the two accused had allegedly robbed Access Bank in Bijilo, each obtaining a minimum of D300,000, and that the proceeds were allegedly used to purchase a BMW from a Gambian car dealer.
According to the witness, from their findings, the vehicle was bought for operational purposes as transportation had been a constraint during the Access Bank robbery in Bijilo.
He stated that the same BMW was used to facilitate the movement of the accused during the El Hella robbery on 8 February 2025.
He further testified that after the El Hella robbery, the vehicle was allegedly given to a mechanic identified as Abdoulie Jallow to change its colour in order to make it difficult to trace. A sum of money was reportedly provided to purchase repainting materials. The mechanic, he said, was unaware that police were searching for the vehicle, and both the mechanic and the car were apprehended on the same day at Bond Road Junction.
The witness also told the court that in the early hours of 8 February 2025, between 6:00 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., the accused allegedly used the same BMW. He stated that Losseni Diabate reportedly drove the vehicle to the El Hella shop, where they carried out the robbery, and fled the scene using the car.
