Nassau, BAHAMAS- A political refugee from The Gambia has been granted bail after being accused of having a fake Bahamian driver’s license.
Ousman Bojang was arrested on July 21 after he allegedly presented the forged driver’s license to a policeman.
He denied charges of possession of a forged document and uttering a forged document at his arraignment on July 24 and was denied bail.
Bojang, who was granted political asylum on August 5, 2020, was granted $9,500 in the Supreme Court on August 10.
Bojang arrived in The Bahamas on December 5, 2015 and was granted a 14-day visitor’s visa. At that time, he didn’t tell immigration officers that he was seeking asylum.
He was arrested on December 30 of that year for overstaying when he went to the Immigration Department seeking an extension of his visa. Once again, Bojang did not say that he was seeking asylum.
Attempts to repatriate Bojang were unsuccessful and he was detained until a judge ordered his release on June 16, 2017.
In August 2022, then Senior Justice Indra Charles awarded Bojang $166,100 in damages after finding that his detention was unlawful because he had not been convicted of an offense and authorities had failed to get a deportation order.
Bojang, who had initially sought $1 million in damages, is appealing the award.
Copyright Bahamas Courts News 2023
