Three Americans sentenced to death in Congo following coup attempt

Three U.S. citizens were sentenced to death in the Democratic Republic of Congo following their alleged involvement in a failed coup attempt against President Felix Tshisekedi.

Tyler Thompson, Marcel Malanga and Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun were sentenced last Friday by a Congolese military court, along with 32 other defendants. The charges include terrorism, murder, criminal association and illegal possession of weapons.

A journey that ended in tragedy

Tyler Thompson, 21, traveled to the Democratic Republic of Congo from Utah in April, believing he would participate in a scouting trip to South Africa with his high school friend, Marcel Malanga. However, the trip took an unexpected turn when Thompson and Malanga found themselves involved in an attempted coup led by Christian Malanga, Marcel's father, who called himself the leader of the New Zaire Movement.

The failed coup began on May 19 with an armed attack on the residence of the speaker of parliament, Vital Kamerhe, followed by an assault on the official residence of President Tshisekedi. Christian Malanga was killed during the assault, and five other people also lost their lives. Congolese security forces arrested more than 50 people, including Thompson, Malanga and Zalman-Polun, a drug trafficker from Maryland. Those arrested were taken to a military prison in Kinshasa, where they faced severe torture and extreme conditions during the trial.

The conviction and reactions

The Congolese military court sentenced Thompson, Malanga and 33 other individuals to death last Friday. Thompson's family has expressed their grief and maintains that the young men were misled about the true nature of the trip. Thompson's stepmother and Malanga's mother maintain that their children were unaware of the involvement in the coup.

During the trial, Malanga claimed that his father coerced him and his high school friend into participating in the attack. "Dad had threatened to kill us if we did not follow his orders," he testified in court. Several militia members also claimed to have suffered similar threats and some even recounted being duped into believing they were joining a volunteer organization, when in fact they were involved in the coup plot.

The U.S. State Department indicated that the legal process in the DRC allows for appeals and that the U.S. embassy will continue to assist in the case. However, the U.S. government has not yet qualified the convicts as wrongfully convicted, which reduces the chances of negotiations for their return.

Next steps

The death penalty was reinstated in the Democratic Republic of Congo in March after more than two decades of suspension, although no convictions have been carried out to date. If carried out, those convicted could face a firing squad.