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Gambia receives $2.5m from sale of ex-ruler's Maryland mansion

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 20 Oct, 22:32 · Archive

Gambian authorities received $2,573,414 from the forfeiture of a Maryland mansion owned by former ruler Yahya Jammeh, to compensate victims.

Gambian authorities said Tuesday that they had received funds recovered from the forfeiture of a United States property owned by former ruler Yahya Jammeh. The Gambia Reparations Commission received $2,573,414.10 from the sale of a mansion in Potomac, Maryland. The U.S. Department of State had secured the forfeiture in 2022 after filing a civil forfeiture complaint alleging the property was purchased with proceeds of corruption through a trust set up by Jammeh's wife.

The funds have been deposited directly into the Reparations Fund account at the Central Bank of Gambia and will be used only for payment of reparations by the commission. The commission was set up in 2023 to compensate victims of abuse under Jammeh's rule. Jammeh ruled the country for over two decades, a period marked by arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances and summary executions, according to victims and rights groups. He was forced out in 2017 when he rejected the 2016 election results, prompting the threat of military intervention by the Economic Community of West African States.

Sirra Ndow, Director of the Alliance of Victim-Led Organizations, described the repatriation as 'an important step toward reparations for victims and survivors'.

Gambia receives $2.5m from sale of ex-ruler's Maryland mansion
Image: News4Jax

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In this story: Yahya Jammeh · Gambia · United States · Gambia Reparations Commission · U.S. Department of State · Potomac · Maryland

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