A Saudi Pro League footballer in the Gambia has defended his non-payment of customs duty at the Banjul International Airport.
Al-Taawoun forward, Musa Barrow, 26, said he decided not to pay the duties after he overheard a female Customs officer saying she “don’t care who he is or if he holds a diplomatic passport everyone will be treated the same.”
In a statement issued via his brother, Barrow said he believes the remarks of the officer were rude and unacceptable.
He stated that he arrived in the Gambia with five bags three of which belonged to his namesake. He said the officers decided to inspect his two bags one of which contained his personal clothes, football boots, and trainers.
“The other second bags searched had sweets for children at home. The remaining three bags were not opened or checked at all. Yet, officer Anna Jarju insisted on charging D15,000, without explaining how she reached that amount,” he said.
“His concern was not about paying the D15,000.00 discounted or not!. He had just paid D25,000 weeks earlier without hesitation. His problem this time was how he was spoken to and treated.
“You can ask other eyewitnesses and fellow Customs officers, Anna’s tone was very very rude, dismissive, and unnecessarily harsh. She was overheard saying: I don’t care who he is or if he holds a diplomatic passport everyone will be treated the same. That kind of tone does not reflect professional customs conduct. Customs officers are trained to treat all passengers with respect and professionalism. Inspect all bags fairly before applying charges. Speak clearly and calmly, never rudely and avoid personal remarks or dismissive statements.”
The Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA) has denied that the footballer was rudely spoken to at the Airport. It said the footballer had used his status and fame card and refused to engage with officials after he was informed that his luggage were flagged for inspection.
It said that after the footballer arrived at Banjul International Airport on 11th July 2025, his suitcases together with that of all the arriving passengers went through mandatory luggage scanning per standard procedure, managed by a joint security taskforce comprising the Gambia International Airlines (GIA), Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (DLEA), State Intelligence Services (SIS), Food Safety Unit and public health officials.
It added that during the process, all five of Mr Barrow’s suitcases were flagged by the image analyst for Customs related concerns, which was communicated to him but he refused to engaged with the officers.
“Instead, his brother and some guys brought the suitcases to Mrs. Anna Jarju, GRA Shift Supervisor, who was not present during the scanning. Despite requests from officers, Mr. Barrow refused to come forward for inspection. His brother opened the luggage on his behalf, but failed to present invoices or supporting documentation for the contents,” a media statement from GRA stated.
“In the absence of proper valuation documents, customs duties were estimated at D15,000 (D2,500 per suitcase) and later reduced to D10,000. Mr. Barrow, through his brother, claimed he could not pay the amount. Following further discussion, GRA officials held a closed-door meeting with Mr. Barrow and conditionally allowed him to leave without payment with a stern warning to ensure further compliance.”
