Three Americans accused of participating in last month’s failed coup attempt in the Democratic Republic of the Congo stood trial in a military court in Kinshasa. Alongside dozens of other defendants, they were seated on plastic chairs as the hearing commenced.
Led by opposition figure Christian Malanga, the botched coup targeted the presidential palace and a key ally of President Felix Tshisekedi, resulting in six fatalities.
Malanga, who live-streamed the attack, was subsequently shot dead by the Congolese army while resisting arrest.
The defendants, including Marcel Malanga, the 21-year-old son of Christian Malanga, along with two other Americans, face charges such as terrorism, murder, and criminal association.
Initially, the court listed 53 names, but Christian Malanga’s name and another were removed after death certificates were provided.
Tyler Thompson Jr., aged 21, accompanied Marcel on the trip to Africa, initially believed to be a sponsored holiday.
His family disclosed their past as former high school football teammates. Marcel reportedly offered Thompson up to $100,000 for a “security job” in Congo, as claimed by teammates.
Thompson appeared in the open-air military court on Friday, with a shaved head and evident sores on his skin.
His family maintains Thompson was unaware of Malanga’s intentions and had no plans for political activism or entering Congo.
Their intended travel was solely to South Africa and Eswatini, clarified his stepmother, Miranda Thompson.
Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun, 36, stands as the third American on trial.
Zalman-Polun, who pleaded guilty to trafficking marijuana in 2015, reportedly had ties to Christian Malanga through a gold mining company established in Mozambique in 2022, as documented in an official journal from Mozambique’s government and reported by the Africa Intelligence newsletter.
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