Victims of alleged Jammeh henchman Ousman Sonko welcome Swiss trial as Gambian government faces pressure to bring justice 

The former interior minister Sonko goes on trial in Switzerland battling charges of crimes against humanity. The trial is on its fourth day and two witnesses have so far testified against Sonko: a serving military officer Lt. Col. Bunja Darboe tortured at the NIA in 2006 for his alleged involvement in a foiled coup, and Binta Jamba-- a widow of Almamo Manneh, alleged to have been raped by Sonko multiple times from 2000 to 2005. Nogoi Njie testifying before the Truth Commission BANJUL, Gambia - In the 22-year rule of Gambia’s former dictator Yahya Jammeh, protests were rare. The...

January 11, 2024Feature
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A “remorseful” driver gets life. The trigger man who “killed for interest of country” still walks

Picture Source: AFP Dawda Nyassi was a former fighter in the Liberian civil war. He was believed to have been   affiliated with  Kukoi, a socialist “quack” revolutionary who seized power for about 2 weeks, in The Gambia in 1981. Nyassi would spend a few years in Liberia where he got married and had 2 kids. He returned home in 2006.  Like most of his team members, they would be arrested intermittently by the security forces for suspicion of overthrowing the government. After 2 succeeding arrests, Dawda’s luck ran out.  A timber trader, he took a trip from his home village Bondali, in...

December 4, 2023Current Affairs, Feature
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Gambia College suspends staff over alleged rape attempt 

A picture taken by Isha a day after the incident shows bruises on her neck The Gambia College has suspended Alasana Janneh, an admin assistant over the alleged rape attempt on a female student at his office last month. On September 24, a Malagen investigation exposed how Janneh, 32, who is responsible for entering grades for students at diploma primary level at the college, lured the 22-year-old student at his office at night and tried to force sex with her in exchange for entering her grades.  Three days later, he appeared before Brikama Magistrates Court presided by Magistrate A.B Faal, and...

October 2, 2023Investigations
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ROY’s LAST FINGER IN JONGFOLO and TENENG’s DOWNSTAIRS. PARENTS, POLICE SAY THAT’s OK

ROY's LAST FINGER IN JONGFOLO and TENENG's DOWNSTAIRS. PARENTS, POLICE SAY THAT's OK A police raid on the residence of a 75-year-old British national with a history of violating underaged girls uncovers ‘packets of sex enhancement drugs’. Jongfolo*, 12, who had just left the house reveals how Roy Webster finger fucks her, licks her and and puts his penis in her mouth to suck. She’s not alone. Her friend too, Teneng*,...

August 10, 2023Investigations, The Big Story
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Inside the Securiprofit deal

In this investigation Malagen reveals how the introduction of $20 security levy at the airport has caused possible financial loss of at least D274m to the state. And the party has just started. It has just been three years, 11 more years to go. The contract granted to Securiport, a US-based company to provide aviation and immigration security was negotiated from the Office of the President. Despite public outcry, objection from travel and tourism industry, and strong opposition from even within the government, the Securiprofit deal was signed and implemented in apparent violation of laws on tax, procurement and public finance. Click...

September 16, 2022Investigations, The Big Story
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Justice, at last, is on the horizon

President Adama Barrow’s decision to prosecute his predecessor Yahya Jammeh and his henchmen – and a woman – for murderous crimes has received widespread public support. For victims like 22-year-old Fatou Barrow (not related to President Barrow), who was just five months old when her father was shot and killed, justice, at last, is on the horizon. But has it always been so?In this election investigation series, Malagen unravels how the pursuit for justice for Jammeh-era crimes has been a classic case of game of thrones, a story of politics of deceit, betrayal and ambition.Faced with what he admitted...

June 10, 2022Investigations, The Big Story
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Profiting from rebellion: Inside ‘blood timber’ traffickers network in Gambia

Trafficking of timber is a multi-million dollar business that sustains a rebellion in Casamance, southern Senegal. In this investigation, Malagen exposes how a band of smugglers and business people in the Gambia, some of them politically connected, continue to profit from the illicit trade in what has become known as ‘blood timber’. The government is complicit. At the expense of lives and livelihoods, the presidency and environment ministry often waive the rules and authorise illegal export of timber in the name of ‘maximising revenue’ for the government.

April 22, 2022Investigations, The Big Story
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