By Sainabou Sambou
A High Court judge has sentenced a man to life imprisonment after convicting him of raping a four-year-old girl in a case that has shocked residents of Brikama and drawn national attention to the vulnerability of young children.
Justice S.K. Jobarteh of the High Court in Banjul delivered the judgment on Thursday, 21 May 2026, finding the accused guilty of rape contrary to Section 3(1)(a) and punishable under Section 4(1)(a)(iii)(bb) of the Sexual Offenses Act 2013. The court ruled that the prosecution had proved its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
The incident occurred sometime in June 2025 at Brikama Giddah, where the accused allegedly took the minor into his room and subjected her to a violent sexual assault under coercive circumstances. The child suffered severe injuries, including a second-degree perineal tear that required emergency surgery.
According to court testimony, the ordeal began when children from the accused’s compound came to play with the victim and her younger sister at their home. The children later returned to the accused’s compound to continue playing. When the victim did not return home, her mother grew concerned and went searching for her.
A woman at the accused’s compound informed the mother that the child had gone with the accused to a nearby shop.
Upon the victim’s eventual return, she was crying and reportedly told her mother that the accused had beaten her. Further inspection revealed blood between the child’s legs, prompting the mother to scream in horror that the accused had “killed” her daughter. Her cries drew neighbors as she collapsed in distress.
The victim’s mother, who was three months pregnant at the time, testified that she lost her pregnancy the same day due to the trauma. The child was rushed to the hospital, where she underwent surgery to repair the damage.
Justice Jobarteh reviewed extensive evidence presented by the prosecution, which called eleven witnesses and tendered eighteen exhibits. The victim’s mother was the first prosecution witness. Under cross-examination, she acknowledged she did not personally witness the assault and that her account was based on what the child told her.
Several neighbors corroborated the immediate aftermath. Dado Bah, the second prosecution witness, described hearing shouting from the victim’s compound and seeing the child bleeding profusely from her private parts. She assisted in taking the heavily bleeding child to the police station, where officers observed blood continuing to pour from her. The child’s orange skirt was heavily stained and was later changed by police before she was transported to the hospital.
Tamsir Jallow, a school teacher and third prosecution witness, testified that he heard the mother’s screams and saw the victim bleeding. He went to the accused’s compound but found him absent. Jallow discovered the accused’s phone still in the room, suggesting a recent departure, and then located and helped apprehend the suspect.
The four-year-old victim herself testified as the fourth prosecution witness, giving unsworn evidence. Though she could not identify the accused in court, she told the judge that the man climbed on top of her, removed her pants, and wounded her private part. She said she then went home and was taken to the hospital. Under cross-examination, she confirmed she had been playing with other children that day.
Forensic evidence proved crucial. Habib Jagne, a forensic science specialist with the Gambia Police Force, authored a DNA report admitted into evidence. He testified that blood stains on the accused’s shorts matched the victim’s DNA profile from saliva samples. The chain of custody was properly maintained, he said.
Police officers who responded to the scene described finding blood stains beside the accused’s bed despite recent rain, wet shirts, and a bucket of reddish water. The accused was wearing two pairs of shorts when arrested — one stained with blood and the inner pair wet. Both were seized as evidence.
Dr. David Demba, who treated the victim, testified that the child arrived in severe pain with active bleeding from her vagina. Examination revealed a second-degree perineal tear requiring surgical repair under anesthesia. The doctor concluded the injury was consistent with sexual assault, given the child’s age.
In his defense, the accused denied the charges. He claimed he was watering blocks he had molded when neighbors confronted and beat him. He attributed the blood in his room to crushed bed bugs and the blood on his clothing to injuries sustained during the assault by neighbors. He also denied ownership of certain clothing items tendered in evidence.
Justice Jobarteh carefully evaluated the defense arguments, including claims that the victim failed to identify the accused and that the DNA evidence was unreliable. The judge rejected these challenges, noting that medical evidence, forensic findings, and multiple eyewitness accounts of the aftermath materially corroborated the child’s testimony.
“The prosecution has proved beyond a reasonable doubt that it was the accused person and no other who committed the offense charged,” Justice Jobarteh ruled. The court convicted the accused accordingly.
During mitigation, defense counsel Khadijah A. Mohammad Bisola urged the court to show mercy, describing the convict as a first-time offender and a hardworking young man with his whole life ahead of him.
Justice Jobarteh acknowledged the mitigating factors but said the gravity of the crime outweighed them. The judge emphasized the profound harm inflicted on a four-year-old child, including a ruptured hymen and surgical intervention, and stressed society’s duty to protect its most vulnerable members.
“Children are entitled to protection, safety, and care,” Justice Jobarteh stated. “Courts must respond firmly when such protection is violated.”
The sentence of life imprisonment was imposed to serve the purposes of deterrence, denunciation, retribution, and public protection. The convict was reminded of his right to appeal.
The case has highlighted ongoing concerns about child safety in The Gambia and the effectiveness of the Sexual Offenses Act 2013 in delivering justice for the youngest victims.
This conviction sends a strong message that sexual violence against children will be met with the full force of the law. As Justice Jobarteh noted, such offenses strike at the heart of family and community life, demanding an uncompromising judicial response.
