Three Americans accused of attempted coup appear before Congolese military court

By CHRISTINA MALKIA

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Three Americans accused of involvement in last month's attempted coup in Congo appeared Friday in a Kinshasa military court, along with dozens of other defendants who were lined up in chairs in plastic in front of the judge on the first day. of the audience.

Six people were killed in last month's failed coup attempt by little-known opponent Christian Malanga, which targeted the presidential palace and a close ally of President Félix Tshisekedi. Malanga was shot dead shortly after broadcasting the attack live for resisting arrest, the Congolese army said.

The defendants face a number of charges, many of which carry the death penalty, including terrorism, murder and criminal conspiracy. The court said there were 53 names on the list, but the names of Christian Malanga and another person were removed after the death certificates were produced.

In addition to Marcel Malanga, Malanga's 21-year-old son, a U.S. citizen, two other Americans are on trial for their alleged role in the attack. All three requested an interpreter to translate from French to English.

Tyler Thompson Jr, 21, flew to Africa with Marcel for what his family thought would be a vacation, with all expenses paid by Malanga. His family said they played football together in high school. Their teammates accused Marcel of offering Thompson up to $100,000 to join him on “security work” in the Congo.

Thompson was seen in the open-air military court Friday with a shaved head, sores on his skin, looking nervous and lost as he watched the proceedings. His family claims he had no knowledge of the elder Malanga's intentions, had no plans for political activism and had not even planned to enter Congo. They were supposed to travel only to South Africa and Eswatini, said his mother-in-law, Miranda Thompson.

Marcel's mother, Brittney Sawyer, said her son was innocent and that she had simply followed his father. Sawyer had regularly posted proud family photos on social media, including one in December showing Marcel, a younger sister and a toddler hugging in matching Christmas pajamas.

Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun, 36, was the third American put on trial. He was seen sitting in the last row.

Zalman-Polun, who pleaded guilty in 2015 to marijuana trafficking, allegedly knew Christian Malanga through a gold mining company established in Mozambique in 2022, according to an official gazette published by the Mozambican government and a report from 'Africa Intelligence. bulletin.

The U.S. Embassy in Congo did not respond to a request for comment. On Monday, a spokesperson said it had not had access to prisoners to provide consular services.

A prominent Belgian-Congolese researcher on political and security issues, Jean-Jacques Wondo, also appeared in court on Friday. It is not known what evidence was used against him. Human Rights Watch said it consulted with Wondo for years about his research, and his only connection to Malanga appears to be an old photo.

“Wondo and the other detainees should be credibly charged with a criminal offense or immediately released. An arrest based solely on a 2016 photo is simply not credible,” Human Rights Watch said in a statement Friday.