Ernest Bai Koroma, who was in power in Sierra Leone between 2007 and 2018, was charged with four counts, including treason, for his alleged participation in the riot on November 26, in which a group of men attacked a barracks. of the Army and freed thousands from prison.
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Amadu Koita, a former soldier and member of Koroma's personal security, was also charged in a Freetown court, accused of having orchestrated the attack on the Wilberforce barracks, the most important in the country.
“The Republic of Sierra Leone on Tuesday charged Amadu Koita and eleven other people, including former police and prison officials, for their role in the failed coup d'état of November 26,” Information Minister Chernor Bah announced in a statement.
Ten of the other 11 defendants also appeared in court, while the other accused will do so on January 9, as he is currently recovering in a hospital from an alleged illness. However, the names of none of them were revealed.
The arrests will continue
Koita, a well-known critic of the government on social media, was detained just over a week after what authorities called “clearly and unambiguously” an attempted coup. He was shown sitting on a wooden chair, with his hair partially shaved and bruised and both eyes swollen.
Koroma, for his part, also attended the arraignment on Wednesday, while several of his supporters cried in the back of the courtroom. The treason charge can carry a life prison sentence, under Sierra Leone law.
The former president had been summoned to testify in early December in relation to the alleged attempt, in which 20 people lost their lives and 2,200 inmates were released from a prison.
Information Minister Bah announced that charges will be brought against other people in the coming days.
Process in doubt
The events of November 26 were originally interpreted as a response to the disputed results of the June 24 elections, in which Julius Maada Bio was declared the winner for a second term, with 56.17% of the votes, while the opposition showed his doubts about the neatness of the process.
The subsequent riot, however, was condemned by the European Union, the United Nations, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the United States and the United Kingdom, among others, and the opposition leader Samura Kamara supported the actions of the recently assumed government to confront the failed attempt.
With Reuters and EFE
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