Death sentences for murder and theft were confirmed for eight soldiers and one civilian in the war-torn northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to court records released on Tuesday Two colonels, three additional soldiers, and a citizen were all given the death penalty on Monday in a case at Bunia High Military Court for the murder of two Chinese gold miners.
Colonels Mukalenga Tsendeko and Kayumba Sumahili were among those who had all been adjudicated guilty of murder and criminal ties.
Three further soldiers who had been found guilty and given a 10-year prison term were exonerated.
The two top commanders were charged with planning an assault on a convoy travelling through Irumu region in Ituri province carrying four gold bars, $6,000 in cash, and Chinese labourers.
On March 17, 2022, an attack on the caravan that was leaving a goldmine occurred in the hamlet of Nderemi. Their driver, a civilian, was injured, and two Chinese guys perished.
For “embezzling war armaments intended for military operations,” the highest military court in the Democratic Republic of the Congo condemned Lieutenant Colonel Marcel Kaligamire and two soldiers to death.
In the same case, the sentencing of four further soldiers and three civilians were lowered from death to 10 years in prison, while two additional civilians received a five-year term.
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The Cooperative for the Development of the Congo (CODECO), which has since 2017 sown unrest throughout the gold fields of Ituri province, is accused by the prosecution of selling the explosives.
Ituri, along with its neighbour North Kivu, has been under a “state of siege” since May 2021 and has been the scene of numerous civilian deaths in recent years, according to the political-religious organisation.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo often imposes death sentences, although these are usually reduced to life in prison.
(With inputs from agencies)
