Former Jungler Bai Lowe Sentenced To Life In Prison

Bai Lowe, one of the assassins in the Jammeh-era hit squad known as the ‘Junglers', has today been sentenced to life imprisonment by a German court for his participation in an act that killed Deyda Hydara, the managing editor and co-proprietor of The Point Newspaper. He was convicted of crimes against humanity, murder, and attempted murder for his role as a driver for the hit squad known as the Junglers. “We are pleased to welcome the strongest verdict in Celle today," said Baba Hydara,the eldest son of Deyda Hydara . “This is a milestone judgment on every level, especially with regards to universal jurisdiction. We thank the judiciary for their tenacity and steadfastness in delivering justice today," Baba who is in Germany, added. As well as having a role in Hydara’s killing, prosecutors accuse Lowe of involvement in the attempted assassination of lawyer Ousman Sillah, and the murder of Dawda Nyassi, a suspected opponent of the president. Lowe claimed to be a political refugee who was afraid for his life under Jammeh when he came in Europe via Senegal in December 2012. In March 2021, he was arrested in Germany due to the charges. The law’s “long arm”

According to investigators, one piece of evidence against Lowe is a phone conversation he did in 2013 with a Gambian radio station in the US, during which he admitted to taking part in the attacks. However, Lowe said in a statement read out to the court that he had only reiterated what other persons had informed him regarding the case’s details in order to highlight Jammeh’s government’s brutality. Jammeh ruled Gambia with an iron fist for 22 years but fled the country in January 2017 after losing a presidential election to relative unknown Adama Barrow. He refused to acknowledge the results but was forced out by a popular uprising and fled to Equatorial Guinea. “The long arm of the law has caught up to Bai Lowe in Germany… as it will hopefully soon catch up to Jammeh himself,” said Reed Brody, a lawyer with the International Commission of Jurists who works with Jammeh’s victims. Along with former interior minister Ousman Sonko, who has been under investigation in Switzerland since 2017, and another accused former Jungler, Michael Sang Correa, who was indicted in June 2020 in the United States, Lowe is one of three alleged collaborators of Jammeh who are being held abroad. Earlier this year, the Gambian administration said that it was collaborating with the regional ECOWAS bloc to establish a tribunal that would try individuals who committed crimes under Jammeh.

The Victims' Centre (VC) in The Gambia has also welcomed the verdict. “The VC, CSOs, and other victim-led organisations welcome the verdict of Bai Lowe's life sentence.It is highly welcome and has come at the right time,” Adama Jalllow, the coordinator of VC said. “This is a signal for other perpetrators who are on the run to understand that they cannot escape justice." The VC and other victim-led organisations will continue to pursue justice for the victims.”