Some of the seized items at the Banjul airport
By Buba Gagigo
The Drug Law Enforcement Agency, The Gambia (DLEAG), has reported the arrest of an American-Gambian dual citizen found in possession of various illicit substances at Banjul International Airport.
According to DLEAG, the suspect was apprehended on January 29, 2025, at approximately 08:17 GMT in the airport’s arrival hall. Authorities discovered twenty (20) packages of skunk cannabis, six (6) packets of skunk chewing gum, ten (10) jars of cannabis oil, and 1g 536mg of cocaine in his possession.
“The American National holds a dual citizenship of Gambia and the United States of America. He was arrested at the arrival hall of the Banjul International Airport on the 29th of January 2025 around 08:17 hours GMT onward with twenty (20) packages of skunk cannabis, six (6) Packets of Skunk Chewing gum, ten (10) jars containing cannabis oil & 1g 536mg cocaine,” DLEAG said.
In a statement shared on their Facebook page, DLEAG reported that a total of thirty-six (36) individuals were arrested in connection with thirty-four (34) drug-related cases. Among them, thirty-five (35) were men and one (1) was a woman. The female suspect, a Gambian national, was arrested by officers of The Gambia Prison Services (GPS) in New Jeshwang, where she was found with three (3) pieces of cannabis resin, ten (10) ecstasy tablets, and an undisclosed quantity of kush.
“Thirty-five (35) of the arrestees are males and the remaining one (1) is a female. The said female arrestee is a Gambian National who was arrested by officers of The Gambia Prison Services (GPS) at New Jeshwang with three (3) pieces of cannabis resin, ten (10) tablets of ecstasy, and some quantities of kush,” the statement outlined.
The report further detailed the nationalities of the arrested individuals, stating that thirty-one (31) were Gambians, three (3) Senegalese, one (1) Nigerian, and one (1) American.
Additionally, DLEAG disclosed that the Nigerian suspect was apprehended at Tipa Garage in Kanifing Municipality with thirty-three (33) wraps of kush. Meanwhile, two Senegalese nationals were arrested in Barra, North Bank Region, with fifteen (15) bundles of cannabis sativa, while another Senegalese suspect was found in possession of one hundred and fifty (150) ecstasy tablets at the Jenoi checkpoint in the Lower River Region.