Gambiaj.com – (DENVER, Colorado) – Gambian ex-soldier Michael Sang Correa was on Thursday sentenced to 810 months in federal prison for his role in the torture of detainees during the regime of former Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh.
Before sentencing, Correa made a lengthy statement in which he admitted that victims were “horrifically tortured physically and emotionally” and expressed remorse for his involvement.
“I would like to sincerely apologize from my heart. I am sorry for my actions causing physical harm to the people. Nobody should go through torture. It is wrong, unacceptable,” Correa told the court, while also reflecting on the personal toll his trial and conviction had taken on his family.
But Judge Christine M. Arguello, who presided over the trial, made clear that Correa’s apology could not erase the gravity of his crimes.
In imposing the maximum available penalty—810 months, or 67 years and six months—she said even such a severe sentence could not truly capture the pain inflicted on his victims.
“This court believes that a sentence of 810 months reflects the seriousness of the offenses and is sufficient, but not greater than necessary, to promote respect for the law and deter others from similar conduct,” Judge Sweeney said.
She added, however, that no punishment could fully account for the lifelong scars borne by those Correa brutalized as a member of Jammeh’s feared death squad, known as the “Junglers.”
The ruling came after the court rejected Correa’s request for a reduced sentence and denied his bid for leniency based on claims of mitigating circumstances.
Judge Arguello found no grounds to depart from federal sentencing guidelines, concluding that the maximum penalty was warranted.
Correa, who has been in U.S. custody since 2019, was convicted on six counts of torture in what human rights advocates hailed as a landmark case—the first time a Jammeh-era perpetrator has faced justice inside the United States of America.
The trial of Correa brought renewed attention to the crimes committed during Jammeh’s 22-year rule, which ended in 2017 after he refused to accept electoral defeat and was forced into exile in Equatorial Guinea.
Several countries have pursued justice for Jammeh-era crimes. In 2023, a German court convicted Bai Lowe, a former Jungler for murder and crimes against humanity.
A Swiss court also sentenced Jammeh’s former Interior minister, Ousman Sonko to 20 years in prison for similar abuses.
While Correa has the right to appeal within 14 days, the verdict marks a major step in global efforts to hold Jammeh’s enforcers accountable. Still, for many survivors, the judge’s words underscored the deep truth: that no sentence, however long, can erase the horrors of torture.
