By Kemo Kanyi
Principal Magistrate Anna O. Mendy of the Brikama magistrates’ court has sentenced three Senegalese to a mandatory jail term of one year and ordered their deportation after serving the sentence.
The convicts: Ousman Faye, Pape Birame Dioup, and Magueye Camara have faced charges of offences of revocation of passe and permit contrary to section 6(2) of the immigration Act.
Delivering her judgement on the offence charged, principal magistrate Anna O. Mendy said she had carefully watched into the guilty plea of the accused persons, and it was remorseful. She continued: “The accused persons pleaded guilty without wasting court’s time, but the illegal migration is causing havoc in the country, and it cannot be entertained.”
Relying on points of law, the principal magistrate cited section 29(2) and 29(3) of the Criminal Procedure Code which state: “When a Magistrate is informed on oath that a person is likely to commit a breach of the peace or disturb the public tranquility, or to do any wrongful act that may probably occasion a breach of the peace or disturb the public tranquility, the Magistrate may, in the manner hereinafter provided, require that person to show cause why he or she should not be ordered to execute a recognizance, with or without sureties, forkeeping the peace for such period, not exceeding one year, as the Magistrate thinks fit.
(2) Proceedings shall not be taken under this section unless either the person informed against, or the place where the breach of the peace or disturbance is apprehended, is within the local limits of the Magistrate’s jurisdiction.
Furthermore, the principal magistrate reference section 259(1) (a)(b) of the Criminal Procedure Code, which states: “When a person has been ordered only to pay a sum of money by way of fine, costs, compensation or otherwise and is sentenced to imprisonment in default ofpayment of the sum, and the sum is not paid forthwith, the court may—
(a) order that the sum shall be paid either in full on or before such date or by installments payable on or before such dates, as may seem to the court reasonable in the circumstances; and
(b) Suspend the execution of the sentence of imprisonment and release the offender on the execution by the offender of a recognizance, with or without sureties, as the court thinks fit, conditioned for his or her appearance before the court on the date or dates on or before which
payment of the sum or the instalments thereof, as the case may be, is to be made, and if the amount of the sum or of any instalment as the case may be, is not realized on or before the latest date on which it is payable under the order, the court may direct the sentence of imprisonment to be carried into execution at once.”
The court, therefore, relied on section 32 of the immigration Act, which specified punishment due to offenders of section 6(2) of the immigration Act. The trio is sentenced to pay a fine of D2000.00 each, in addition to one year imprisonment and will further be deported to Senegal after serving the jail terms.
