Soldier Malick Jatta confesses participation in killing journalist Deyda Hydara

By MOMODOU JARJU

Lieutenant Malick Jatta a member of the Gambia Armed Forces and a ‘jungler’ has confessed that he participated in the killing the co-proprietor of The Point newspaper, Deyda Hydara.

“Myself, Jeng and Manjang shot, but Tumbul did not fire because he was the commander giving the orders,” he told the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparation Commission (TRRC) on Monday.

He said it was on 2004 when Tumbul Tamba their commander told them they were going for a ‘magic-pen,’ stating that this time it was himsel (Malick) , Tumbul Tamba, Alieu Jeng and Sanna Manajang.

He explained how they boarded a taxi that used to pack at the Yahya Jammeh’s former garage in Kanifing and was chauffeur driven by Tumbul during their operation

He said they drove along the Kairaba Avenue and went towards the Traffic Light, whilst Tumbul was communicating to the former President, Yahya Jammeh.

He said on that trip, there were other commercial taxis that soldiers filled for the operation.

Malick recalled seeing Kawsu Camara alias Bombardier and Malafi Corr each driving a commercial taxi carrying soldiers when Tumbul Tamba was coordinating with the other taxis.

He said one of the taxis used the Stadium route and the other used the Bakau highway, whilst Tumbul also used the Stadium highway.

He revealed that when they reached the Police Intervention Unit (PIU) headquarters around Westfiled-Jimpex area, they drove passed the Police Mobile Unit heading towards the police garage.

“When we came near a vehicle, he (Tumbul) announced that the driver is the idiot,” the witness disclosed.

He said they shot without knowledge of the person they were shooting, but quick to add that they though the person was a rebel.

Malick further told the Commission: “After killing the man, Tumbul drove them to Kanilai without uttering any word.”

He said the members of the patrol team including himself were given money in dollars amounting to more than fifty thousand dalasis (D50,000) the following day.

He said after receipt of the money, he came back to Kombo and got the news of the killing of Dayda Hydara, stating that he was panicked even though the former President condemned the killing of Dayda Hydara.

He said his commander, Major Khalifa Bajinka who was aware of the of the killing of Deyda asked him: “How was your mission?”

The witness said he responded: “Accomplished Sir.”

The witness who said he had stressed to his commander, Major Bajinka that he must remove him from the patrol unit, or else he will remove himself, said his commander was reluctant.

He said he was used in the killing of a person (Deyda Hydara) he never knew before.

The member of the 1996 batch of the Gambia Armed Forces said their patrol team composed of late Tumbul Tamba as the commander, Sanna Manjang as second in command, himself (Malick Jatta) and Alieu Jeng.

He added Solo Bojang used to join them in their operations and assumed second in command role, further revealing that there were other patrol teams but theirs was called the ‘black-black’ from where they were named ‘Black Scorpions’ and later called rechristened ‘Junglers.”

He said the ‘junglers’ who were also responsible for border patrol were trained by the then Italy instructor called Francisco Caso.

Jatta said he was not as a ‘jungler’ explaining that ‘junglers’ were responsible for carrying out executions.

He informed the Commission: “Looking at the chain of command, Tumbul Tamba would not be mad to do some of the operations we were doing without getting orders from the commander-in-chief. So the orders were coming from the commander- in-chief directly.”

He said the orders were coming directly from Yahya Jammeh as Tumbul Tamba was reporting directly to the ex-president.

The former member of the 1st Infantry Battalion in Yundum said he was part of the Libyan trained commandos and after their training with the Libyan instructors; they were all deployed to Kanilai where they spent 9 months.

He said after their stay in Kanilai, he returned to the State Guard as a rifleman and later deployed to Kanilai to the patrol team under the late Tumbul Tamba.

He said their defined role and duty on arrival in Kanilai was to protect the borderline and the Gambian people from the rebels in Cassamance, in southern Senegal.

The trained commando said he realized that there was something, adding that in the army, secrecy means whatever happens in the field stays there.

Malick said his consent to join the army was not what I was put into, revealing that the command used to put them into situations where subordinate will know what they are saying is not true.

Recounting how Tamba reminded them that they should not to forget their oath of secrecy and allegiance, the witness said a soldier owes loyalty to the ideals of the nation, army, commander-in-chief and the unit one is serving.

He said while in Kanilai, they were instructed to stop the rebellion that was ‘cooking up’ in the country, describing it as a tactic used to make thems believe that these people were rebels and they were going to carry out insurgency.

He said whatever they did was under the command of Tumbul Tamba and he will be present.

He mentioned that Tumbul instructed them that there were some people who weren’t grateful to Yahya Jammeh after he had given them amnesty to come back to the country and they want to carry out insurgency.

He pointed out that whenever Tumbul Tamba used his personal vehicle, he (Malick) will know that something abnormal will happen.

He said the patrol team went together with Tumbul Tamba to find out those planning to carry out the insurgency and they murdered a young man named Dawda Nyassi who was put into his (Tamba’s) vehicle and taken around Bafuloto area.

Malick Jatta further confessed: “All four of us fire at this gentleman. Tumbul Tamba ordered that we board the vehicle and left for Kanilai leaving the body unattended.”

He said Tamba told them that Dawda Nyassi was part of the rebellion.

He said in their second mission, the patrol team had Solo Bojang, Tumbul Tamba, Alieu Jeng and Sanna Manajang including himself.

He said Tumbul Tamba called them for a patrol and they left Kanilai and used the trans-Gambia highway coming towards Kombo.

“While in the vehicle, I saw Sanna Manajang with an identified man whom he took in the bush and shot. When I asked Tumbul who that man was, he said the man was Ndongo Mboob.”