U.S. forecloses on ‘multimillion-dollar mansion’ outside of D.C. purchased by Gambian ex- president

The United States government this week foreclosed on a lavish property in the D.C. metro area that had reportedly been obtained using laundered money via an ex-president of a West African country.

The Justice Department this week “secured the forfeiture of a Potomac, Maryland, property acquired with approximately $3.5 million in alleged corruption proceeds by the former President Yahya Jammeh of The Gambia,” the DOJ said in a press release.

The property had allegedly been acquired “through a trust set up by his wife, Zineb Jammeh,” the department said. 

The DOJ claimed that Jammeh “corruptly obtained millions of dollars through the misappropriation of stolen public funds and the solicitation of bribes from businesses seeking to obtain monopoly rights over various sectors of the Gambian economy,” after which he allegedly “conspired with his family members and close associates to utilize a host of shell companies and overseas trusts to launder his alleged corrupt proceeds throughout the world, including through the purchase of a multimillion-dollar mansion in Potomac, Maryland.”

The federal government has now acquired that mansion, the DOJ said, along with “all rental income generated by the property” since August of 2020.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. said the case “demonstrates our ability to work with foreign partners to secure the forfeiture of assets allegedly derived from illicit bribes and stolen funds despite complex attempts to disguise the proceeds and their intended recipients.” 

Jammeh is currently in exile in Equatorial Guinea.