Thaindian News

London, Aug 20 (IANS) President of the Gambia National Olympic Committee (GNOC) — a member of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) — Langtombong Tamba has been sentenced to death after he was found guilty of treason, conspiracy to murder and participating in a coup four years ago to overthrow the democratically elected Government in Gambia.
The Daily Telegraph reported that Tamba was one of seven people sentenced to death after being found guilty of trying to oust that country’s leader, President Yahya Jammeh.

Tamba was also found guilty of procuring arms and ammunition, equipment and mercenaries to stage the coup.

Tamba is also the former Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of the Gambia Armed Forces (GAF), and is also the vice-chairman of the Gambia Football Association.

“After going through the evidence of the prosecution and the defence, I find all the persons guilty and accordingly sentence them to death on all three counts,” Judge Emmanuel Amadi was quoted as saying when handing down the sentence.

Tamba, however, have denied the allegations and is now appealing.

Tamba was arrested in November 2009, after he was sacked as Chief of the Defence Staff a month earlier. During that time he was alleged to have been involved in a plot to embezzle $12 million from the Government.

GNOC have called an extraordinary congress for later this year to elect a new president to replace Tamba. Beatrice Allen, first vice president of GNOC and among Africa’s most influential female sports administrators, is the likely successor.

Allen is also a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) since 2006, and a member of IOC’s Coordination Commission for the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympics.