Ousman Sonko | |
---|---|
Minister of the Interior | |
In office 7 May 2012 – 19 September 2016 |
|
President | Yahya Jammeh |
Preceded by | Lamin Kaba Bajo |
Succeeded by | Momodou Alieu Bah |
In office 22 November 2006 – 16 April 2012 |
|
Preceded by | Baboucarr Jatta |
Succeeded by | Lamin Kaba Bajo |
Personal details | |
Born |
Serekunda, the Gambia |
9 January 1969
Ousman Sonko (born 9 January 1969) is a former Gambian politician. He served as Interior Minister between 2006 and 2016 in the government of President Yahya Jammeh.
Sonko was born in Serekunda. He had a career in the military, starting in 1989. He served as Inspector general of police before being appointed to Interior Minister. He was appointed as Interior Minister on 23 October 2006. On 19 September 2016 Sonko was replaced as Interior Minister by Momodou Alieu Bah.
In September 2016 Sonko fled to Sweden, applying for residency on 21 September. On 26 January 2017 Sonko was arrested in Switzerland, where he had been reportedly living since November 2016, after his request in Sweden had been denied. Sonko was arrested after the rights group TRIAL filed a complaint against him on the basis of human rights violations. At the time of his arrest he was living in asylum seeking center. He has been remanded into custody for three months to investigate the allegations. His detention was extended by another three months in May 2017.