By Ebrima Mbaye
In a historic ruling, Michael Sang Correa, a former member of ex-Gambian President Yahya Jammeh’s notorious “Junglers” death squad, was sentenced to 67 years and six months in federal prison on Friday for his role in the torture of suspected coup plotters in 2006. The sentence, handed down by Judge Charlotte N. Sweeney in a Denver courtroom, marks the harshest punishment ever imposed under the U.S. federal Torture Act. Before the gavel fell, Correa delivered an emotional apology, breaking down as he addressed the victims and his own family, whose lives had been shattered by his actions.
Correa’s voice trembled as he spoke in a hushed courtroom, publicly acknowledging the brutal torture inflicted on victims for the first time. “There is no doubt the victims were tortured,” he said, his words heavy with remorse. “I am not negating the pain and suffering they went through, nor should I underestimate the reality of their experiences. They were horrifically tortured physically and emotionally in ways that would burden them today. I would like to sincerely apologize from my heart. I am sorry for my involvement and actions causing physical harm to the people. Nobody should go through torture.”
The 46-year-old former Jungler, once a trusted enforcer in Jammeh’s feared paramilitary unit, was convicted in April for his role in the 2006 torture of soldiers accused of plotting a coup against the Gambian dictator. Survivors testified to enduring unimaginable cruelty, including beatings, electrocution, suffocation with plastic bags, and burns from molten plastic. Their harrowing accounts painted a vivid picture of the systematic brutality that defined Jammeh’s 22-year regime.
Correa’s statement also turned personal as he addressed the toll his actions have taken on his family. He spoke of his children, who have faced harassment and physical attacks from peers and strangers alike. “My actions have subjected them to harassment by neighbors… random people in the streets, some of whom left their schoolmates and classmates physically attacking them in school,” he confessed, his voice faltering. “Now they have stopped going to school. I am not proud of what I did. My actions have brought sin and dishonor. I have failed my sons, my sisters, and my family.”
Reflecting on his upbringing, Correa juxtaposed the values he was taught with the violent reality of his years as a Jungler. “I was born into a family that taught me love, respect, and hard work,” he said softly. “Yet my actions betrayed those values. I take responsibility.” His words, though raw, offered a rare moment of accountability from a member of Jammeh’s inner circle, many of whom have remained silent or in hiding since the regime’s collapse in 2016.
Correa’s case is a landmark in international justice. After fleeing The Gambia as Jammeh’s regime crumbled, he lived quietly in the United States, working odd jobs until his 2019 arrest for immigration violations. A year later, federal prosecutors indicted him under the U.S. Torture Act, making him the first non-U.S. national to face such charges. His conviction earlier this year was hailed as a milestone by human rights advocates and Gambian survivors, who see it as a step toward reckoning with the atrocities of Jammeh’s dictatorship.
For the victims, many of whom testified remotely from The Gambia, Correa’s apology may fall short of healing their scars. Yet his public admission that torture was “wrong” and “unacceptable” carried weight in a courtroom far from Banjul, resonating with survivors who have long sought acknowledgment of their suffering. Whether his remorse was genuine or strategic, it marked a stark departure from former regime loyalists’ defiance or denial.
The 67-year sentence underscores a powerful message: torture, no matter where it occurs, will face consequences. For Gambians still grappling with the legacy of Jammeh’s rule, Correa’s punishment is a reminder that justice, though often delayed, can prevail. As the courtroom emptied, his final words lingered—a confession of guilt, a plea for forgiveness, and a cautionary tale of a man whose actions brought devastation to both his victims and his own family.
