A judiciary spokesman announced on Tuesday that a Sierra Leone court has convicted 11 individuals of treason and other offenses linked to an alleged coup attempt. The leader of the group was sentenced to almost 200 years in prison.
Dozens of armed men broke into the country’s armoury and a prison in November, freeing over 2,000 inmates.
The ensuing clashes resulted in the deaths of 18 security personnel.
Authorities arrested approximately 80 suspects, with a dozen charged in January, including former president Ernest Bai Koroma, who was subsequently granted medical leave.
On Monday, Amadu Koita Makalo, the man accused of leading the attack, was sentenced to 182 years in prison on charges of treason, murder, and shooting with intent to murder, according to judiciary spokesperson Moses Lamin Kamara in a statement to the Associated Press.
A former bodyguard of Koroma and outspoken critic of President Julius Maada Bio on social media, Makalo was handed a 182-year prison sentence.
The other 10 individuals, convicted of treason and murder, received substantial prison terms ranging from 30 to 112 years.
Their sentences reflect the severity of the charges, underscoring the government’s crackdown on what it deemed a serious threat to national security.
Despite being officially retired from politics, Koroma remains an influential figure within his political party.
Information Minister Chernor Bah told the AP that many of those arrested in connection with the attack were former associates of the ex-president.
Political unrest has continued in Sierra Leone since President Bio’s reelection last year, which the opposition alleged was rigged in his favor.
Following his election, police disclosed two months later that they had arrested several people, including high-ranking military officers, who were reportedly planning to use protests to “disrupt peace”.
Sierra Leone, grappling with the aftermath of an 11-year civil war that ended more than 20 years ago, remains one of the world’s most impoverished countries, with a population of 8 million.
In contrast, neighboring Guinea is enduring significant political turmoil following a coup in 2021, which has further exacerbated the region’s instability.
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