Friday 21st July 2006

By Modou Sanyang & Soury Camara

The Kanifing Magistrates’ Court presided over by Magistrate Amina Saho-Ceesay, yesterday convicted and sentenced one Momodou L.D. Njie to three years imprisonment with hard labour for forgery and theft.

According to the charge sheet, in December 2005, Mr Njie forged the signature of one Mr Adama Samba, the holder of Account No. 008152015 of Guaranty Trust Bank The Gambia.

The charge sheet also revealed that Mr Njie, between the months of January and June 2006, fraudulently withdrew the sum of D745,000 from Guaranty Trust Bank’s branch in Churchill’s Town, being savings of the said Adama Samba with the bank.

In his testimony, police prosecutor Sgt 453 Touray revealed that on 14 June 2006, the complainant, Adama Samba, was notified by the bank that his account had been overdrawn.  

Mr Samba, Sgt Touray said, swiftly demanded a bank statement and discovered that the last withdrawal, about D90,000, was made on 5 June 2006.

The prosecutor further adduced that the complainant denied ever sending the accused to sign and withdraw money from his account.

The matter was thereafter reported to the Tallinding Police Station and later to the Fraud Squad who subsequently arrested the accused.

At length the respondent, Momodou L.D. Njie, pleaded guilty to the charges against him, whereupon he was sentenced to three years imprisonment and ordered to pay additional costs to the complainant for material he had consequently lost.