British citizen is sentenced to death along with 36 others including three Americans accused of plotting a failed presidential coup in DR Congo
A British citizen is among the 37 people sentenced to death by a military court on Friday after being accused of plotting to overthrow the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
A British citizen is among the 37 people sentenced to death by a military court on Friday after being accused of plotting to overthrow the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Six people were killed during the botched coup attempt led by the little-known opposition figure Christian Malanga in May that targeted the presidential palace and a close ally of President Felix Tshisekedi. Malanga was fatally shot while resisting arrest soon after live-streaming the attack on his social media.
Ezangi Youssouf, who says he is British and lives in London, was one of the men detained after the coup attempt in central Africa and was dealt with today by a military tribunal, not a regular court.
Ezangi was found guilty of criminal conspiracy, terrorism and other charges, and was sentenced to death today at an open-air military court proceeding that was broadcast live on TV.
A spokesperson for the Foreign Office told MailOnline: We are providing consular assistance to a British man detained in DRC and are in contact with the local authorities.
British National Youssouf Ezangi, on trial for coup attempt, sits in the military court in Ndolo military prison in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, 13 September 2024
Benjamin Zalman Polun, Marcel Malanga and Tyler Thompson, American citizens suspected along with a group of around fifty other people to be involved in an attempted coup in Congo, wait for the final verdict during their trial in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo
Some of the 51 defendants on trial for coup attempt sit in the military court to hear their verdict in Ndolo military prison in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo today
We have made representations about the use of the death penalty to the DRC at the highest levels, and we will continue to do so.
The Brit was pictured wearing blue and yellow prison clothes and sitting in plastic chairs as his sentence was read out.
He is among some 50 people, including U.S., British, Canadian, Belgian and Congolese citizens, standing trial following the failed coup.
The verdict was read out under a tent in the yard of Ndolo military prison on the outskirts of Kinshasa. The defendants were seated in front of the judge, wearing blue and yellow prison-issued tops.
A total of 37 defendants were sentenced to death, but have five days to appeal the verdict on charges that included attempted coup, terrorism and criminal association.
The trial began in July.
Richard Bondo, the lawyer who defended the six foreigners, said he disputed whether the death penalty could currently be imposed in Congo, despite its reinstatement earlier this year, and said his clients had inadequate interpreters during the investigation of the case.
American Marcel Malanga attends a court verdict in Kinshasa today on charges of taking part in a coup attempt in May 2024
US citizen Benjamin Zalman Polun pictured today as he sits trial in Kinshasa, DRC, on charges of involvement in a coup attempt back in May
American Tyler Thompson on trial today in DRC
A military court in Democratic Republic of Congo on Friday sentenced 37 people to death in a trial over an attempted coup in capital city
We will challenge this decision on appeal, Bondo said.
Malangas 21-year-old son Marcel, who is a U.S. citizen, and two other Americans - Tyler Thompson, 21, and Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun, 36, were also convicted.
Marcel and Tyler are said to have played high school football together in Utah, and flew to Africa together for what Tylers family believed was a holiday.
Meanwhile Benjamin is reported to have known the older Malanga through a gold mining company.
Marcels mother Brittney Sawyer has said her son is innocent and was simply following his father, who considered himself president of a shadow government in exile.
In Washington, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said embassy staff had attended the proceedings and would continue to follow developments closely.
We understand that the legal process in the DRC allows for defendants to appeal the courts decision, he told a briefing.
