DRC: “They have no charges against Jean-Jacques Wondo”

The two officials shot dead

The military expert, of Belgian nationality, trained at the Royal Military School of Brussels (ERM), returned to the Democratic Republic of Congo “at the invitation of the highest authorities to put its know-how at the service of the ANR (intelligence service, Editor’s note)”, according to one of his former classmates, is still detained in the Ndolo military prison, in Kinshasa.

DRC: A Belgian behind bars following the “coup d’état” in Kinshasa

He is accused of complicity in the bizarre May 19 coup attempt that ended with “the death of the two main leaders of this attack, while all the lamp workers were arrested without a fight. Christian Malanga, the leader of the gang, was shot dead in unclear circumstances and Aboubacar, the second, was killed while trying to swim away. A video, which circulated widely on social networks, shows his execution. When you have a fast boat, it is not difficult to catch up with a swimming man. Why did the soldiers of the Republican Guard shoot him down?” asks this former classmate who speaks “of assassination for which no one is being prosecuted”.

DRC: Jean-Jacques Wondo was expected in Brussels to give lessons at the Royal Military School

Temporary freedom

On June 14, during the first public hearing before the military court, Maître Carlos Ngwapitshi, Jean-Jacques Wondo’s lawyer, pleaded for the provisional release of his client, citing in particular the absence of risk of flight or even his health. This Tuesday, June 18, the public prosecutor sought to brush aside these requests by arguing that “Wondo is being prosecuted for financing terrorism and attack, affiliated with an armed movement. He played the role of provider of means.”

Me Ngwapitshi remains “serene and confident. The court will rule next Tuesday. Mr. Wondo meets all conditions for provisional release and there are no serious charges against him. To say that his vehicle was used by the attackers during their attack makes no sense. This official vehicle was in the parking lot of his office while all the vehicles used by the attackers were seized by the prosecutor’s office and were obviously located where the attack took place.. Me Ngwapitshi brushes aside the two other accusations: “the photo of Jean-Jacques Wondo with Christian Malanga dates back to 2017. The third accusation refers to the fact that my client allegedly deleted exchanges from his phone. What messages? Whose ? It makes no sense. And even if this were the case, where in our laws do you find the ban on deleting messages from your cell phone? The lawyer also insists on the fact that “all the attackers were heard on P.-V. » and “no one mentions my client’s name. Not the slightest trace. The public prosecutor will be unable to present any evidence. Jean-Jacques Wondo will be acquitted.”