Gambiaj.com – (BANJUL) – New evidence reveals Roy Webster, a British national in The Gambia, evaded justice for the alleged sexual abuse of two 12-year-old girls. Malagen’s investigation reveals corruption and collusion between police and parents, with one parent facing threats to testify.
British national Roy, who has been acquitted of child abuse, is reportedly hiding due to corruption, collusion, and cover-ups. One girl who fell prey to Roy got an illness that has forced her father to seek answers and cooperate with one of the Gambia’s investigative platforms, Malagen, in an undercover investigation. The investigation revealed that the police orchestrated a cover-up, including compensation payments, evasion of journalists, and denying their daughter’s abuse. Sankung is now pressuring for accountability.
At 75 years old, Roy, who was always roaming with sex enhancement gadgets, was found guilty of abusing three tweens in 2020. The magistrates court in Banjul imposed a fine of D5,000 (approx. £67) due to Roy’s health condition. On New Year’s Eve 2022, a neighbor spotted Jongfolo, a 12-year-old girl, sneaking into Roy’s house.
The girl, along with her friend Teneng, sells fruits in the street, and Roy buys their fruits in exchange for sex. Sex abuse is widespread in The Gambia, with a growing trend of defilement of under-18s. The climate of impunity is compounded by corruption within law enforcement and the vulnerability of victims. In the case of Roy, he lured the girls into his house by offering sweets, while in Teneng and Jongfolo, he invited them under the guise of buying their fruits.
Malagen has uncovered evidence suggesting that police officer Kawsu Ceesay, who handled Roy’s sex abuse case and denied knowledge of the compensation payments made to the parents, was lying. Evidence suggests Ceesay played a middleman and allegedly pocketed a share of the payments. Some superiors at the Brusubi Police Station, including Kombo Sillah, admitted knowledge of the payments. The payments were made on January 3, 2023, three days after the alleged abuse incident.
Sankung, who received a D10,000 payment to exonerate Roy of abusing his daughter Teneng, has not provided a written statement to the police. Dembo, Teneng’s father, has reportedly done so. Sankung has been called multiple times to report to the police station, but he has not been able to do so. He explains that after receiving the money, Dembo called him to write a statement saying that he did not receive any money.
Sankung tells the police that he was not going to lie and that he was told not to mention the compensation. The police officer uses veiled threats to intimidate Sankung, warning him that if he made a false statement, they would arrest everyone, as they would say that the Toubab did something. Sankung is not in control of the situation and advises him to let the matter rest for his daughter’s future.
Police claim that there is no case against Roy due to a medical report examining children following an alleged sex abuse incident. The Malagen investigation has found that the police have not only lied about the report’s existence and content but are also using it to mislead the parents.
Sankung, who is torn between confusion and frustration, turned to the police for guidance. Sillah asked Sankung to lie and suggested he draft a statement stating that he asked his child if the Toubab had done something to her, and she said he had never done anything to her. Sillah denied knowing anything about the compensation and made no attempts to coerce Sankung into making false testimony to protect Roy.
Kawsu Ceesay denied that his superior, Kombo Sillah, ever disclosed to anyone that he was involved in the compensation payment. Police sources have told Malagen that the police high command is aware of the issues surrounding the Roy case but has shown no interest in pursuing them. Instead, they lamented how Malagen engaged in ‘entrapment’ to get Ceesay to confess to his indictable dealings with Roy and the parents.
