Three government drivers fined over 44 kg of cannabis at Kalagi checkpoint
Brikama Magistrates' Court convicted three government van drivers on 8 October 2026 after DLEAG found 44 kg 402 g of cannabis in their ministry vehicle at Kalagi on 26 August 2026. Each was fined D350,000 with a five-year default prison term; two paid part of the fine and one was remanded.
🇬🇲 Kalagi Military Checkpoint, West Coast Region · Gambia
DLEAG officers stopped white government van registration GG 0848 at the Kalagi Military Checkpoint on 26 August 2026 and found 36 large bundles of suspected cannabis concealed in bags inside the vehicle.[1]The drivers were Adama Tabally, 29, of the Ministry of Finance, and Yankuba Nyassi, 28, and Musa Jammeh, 30, of the Ministry of Agriculture.[1]
On Thursday 8 October 2026, Magistrate A. Darboe at the Brikama Magistrates’ Court convicted all three after they again pleaded guilty to possessing 44 kg402 g of cannabis for trafficking under section 43(4)(e) of the Drug Control Act 2003.[2][3]The prosecution relied on cautionary statements, a weight certificate and an analytical certificate admitted as exhibits.[2]
The court noted aggravating factors, including trafficking, their status as government employees and use of a government vehicle.[2]Each man was fined D350,000, with a default sentence of five years at Mile 2 Central Prison.[2][3]Foroyaa said each must pay D150,000 immediately and the remaining D200,000 in three monthly instalments from 30 October through 30 December 2026, and ordered forfeiture of the van to the Ministry of Finance.[2]The Standard reported that two accused paid D150,000 each toward the fine with three months to settle the balance under surety, while the third, unable to pay anything, was remanded at Mile 2.[3]
Case data
Every number and detail the sources state, with the sources that state it.
The three men changed their pleas more than once before the court recorded guilty pleas on 8 October; the final facts rest on the prosecution's tendered statements and certificates.
The Standard said one convict could not pay any part of the fine and was remanded at Mile 2, while Foroyaa reported each must pay D150,000 immediately with instalments on the balance; the reports disagree on immediate payment.
DLEAG said the cannabis was in 36 large bundles in Toyota minivan GG 0848; no street value or laboratory brand beyond the analytical certificate exhibits was published.
Gambia's Drug Law Enforcement Agency arrested 51 suspects in nationwide operations in October 2026, including two men held at Banjul Post Office with five parcels of suspected skunk. Officers also recovered cannabis sativa, kush and hashish alongside other drugs, with all 51 remaining in custody pending investigation.
On 28 February and 1 March 2026, a joint operation at Jinack Nigi and Jinack Kajata destroyed 60 cannabis farms and burned 14 bags of cannabis, according to the information minister. The Point reported no arrests but gave a two-day breakdown that totals 50 farms.
DLEAG uncovered two cannabis plantations near Sawma Kunda in October 2025 and arrested nine people, including 60-year-old village alkalo Momodou Camara and two children aged 15 and 17. Interrogation of suspect Essa Jawo led officers to the remaining suspects; two motorcycles were recovered.
The director general of the Drug Law Enforcement Agency reported 1,219 people arrested in 1,208 drug cases in 2024, 1,014 of them Gambians. The agency seized 1.9 tonnes of cannabis sativa and 2.2 tonnes from plantations; cannabis made up 54.7% of all seizures.
