A federal court in Denver, Colorado, has sentenced former Jungler, Michael Sang Correa, to 67 years and 6 months in prison. In April, a jury found Correa guilty of torture charges. Several individuals were accused of participating in a coup attempt in March 2006, leading to their arrest and torture by members of the Junglers. Twenty years later, Correa is paying for those crimes, far from home.
Eleven victims of the March 2006 foiled coup made victim impact statements to the court. They described their arrests and tortures and suggested reasonable sentences the court should impose on Correa. The victims who spoke via video recording were Malick Mboob, Lamin Fatty, Madi Ceesay, Abdoulie Conteh, Mahmoud Sarr and a rape victim. Yahya Darboe, Demba Dem, Tamsir Jasseh, Pharing Sanyang and the wife of the late Pierre Mendy gave their statements in court, some of which were read by the State Prosecutor Melissa Hindman. Some of the victims suggested 20 years, others 50, 100, and even a life sentence for Correa.
“The government requested for 120 years. However, these large numbers are really meaningless in the real world,” the Judge Christine Aguellor said in delivering her ruling. She added that the average life expectancy for humans was 80 years and Correa was not going to live that long to serve that sentence. She remarked that those numbers were just for “drama.”
The Judge sentenced Correa to 135 months for each of the 6 counts to be served consecutively.
‘The Ruling is Unreasonable’
Correa’s defense attorney, Matthew Belcher, argued that the court’s ruling was unreasonable. He stated that the cases cited in the court were not fair comparisons for the crimes Correa was accused of.
“Endless people testified in this court that Mr Correa would have been killed. This was not a hypothetical torture, it was not a hypothetical fear. This was real and testified to by these witnesses,” adding that the court ruled based on comparisons of cases of people who were murderers, torturers, and involved in cannibalism against refugees who were not accused of any crime, when Correa was just a 21-year-old private.
He further remarked that Ousman Sonko, former interior minister who was convicted in Switzerland, even as “the right-hand man of Jammeh, was only given 20 years.”
Correa Pleads for Mercy
There was a drastic change in Correa’s appearance from four months ago. He no longer had the high-top dreadlocks in a ponytail and he was dressed in prison uniform, fully restrained in cuffs and chains. Correa, occasionally breaking into tears, delivered an emotional speech, pleading to the court for mercy and asking for the victims and their families for forgiveness – showing remorse that was not displayed during the trial.
“There is no doubt the victims were tortured. I am not negating the pain and suffering they went through neither should I underestimate the reality of their experiences. I will like to sincerely apologise from my heart. I am sorry for my involvement and actions causing physical harm to the victims. I apologise to their families for the emotional pain I have caused all these years. I am not proud of being involved and I hate it. And I will take this to my grave. I take full responsibility for my actions.”
Correa told the court that due to his actions, his family in The Gambia were subjected to constant harassment and his three sons had to discontinue their education because their mates at school were calling their father “a monster, a torturer.”
“I have not had the chance to raise and be a father. To you, the Judge, Your Honour, I appeal for mercy. Please give me the chance to be with my family.”
Despite his pleas, the court maintained the sentence of 135 months for each of the counts to be served consecutively.
