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Senior HSV professional Bakery Jatta: There will be no proceedings against him before the Hamburg-Altona District Court
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FABIAN BIMMER / REUTERS
The district court of Hamburg-Altona has rejected the opening of the main proceedings against the HSV professional Bakery Jatta.
Jatta's lawyer Thomas Bliwier confirmed a corresponding report by the "Hamburger Abendblatt" to the dpa news agency.
»The refusal was based on factual reasons.
The public prosecutor could not show that Mr Jatta deceived,” said Bliwier.
The Hanseatic Higher Regional Court did not initially comment on this.
The Hamburg public prosecutor's office brought charges against the player from the second division soccer team in December last year.
According to the authorities, he should be Bakary Daffeh, who is two and a half years his senior.
The Gambian had been accused of violating the Residence Act in four cases and of indirect false certification in another case.
"There is no suspicion and no reason for further investigation," said Bliwier.
"That's been investigated." The public prosecutor's office can still appeal against the court's decision.
The case drew national attention
In 2019, the case caused a nationwide sensation.
The "image" had raised doubts about Jatta's identity and reported that the offensive player could be two and a half years older than assumed.
Jatta spoke of a "witch hunt" and thanked those responsible at HSV.
The club had stood behind its players.
In September 2019, the Hamburg-Mitte district office stopped investigations into Jatta.
SPIEGEL research revealed that HSV checked Jatta's past back in January 2016, but apparently found no evidence that Jatta had falsified his identity.
At that time, Jatta had been signed by the Hamburgers after fleeing Gambia and his 18th birthday.
Today, Jatta is the longest-serving player in HSV's current professional squad and has already played 134 competitive games for the club.
hba/dpa/sid