Sierra Leone Court Convicts 11 in Coup Case

The Sierra Leone court has delivered its verdict, finding 11 guilty of an alleged coup. Find out what this means for the country’s political landscape.

According to a judiciary spokesperson, 11 individuals have been convicted of treason and other crimes related to what officials consider an attempted coup in Sierra Leone. The leader has received a sentence of nearly two centuries behind bars.

November saw the intrusion of several gunmen into both the armory and prison facilities within the country, resulting in over 2,000 inmates being released. The fourteen-day conflict concluded with a death toll of eighteen security personnel. Following this incident around eighty individuals were detained by authorities; twelve arrests followed in January – including ex-president Ernest Bai Koroma who was subsequently granted sick-leave permission to visit medical professionals.

According to Moses Lamin Kamara, the spokesperson for the judiciary, Amadu Koita Makalo has been convicted of treason, murder and shooting with intent to kill in connection with his alleged role as leader of the attack. As a result, he was sentenced on Monday to 182 years imprisonment.

Makalo, previously employed as a bodyguard by Koroma, has been expressing his dissent towards the current President Julius Maada Bio through social media. Along with Makalo, ten others were convicted of high treason and homicide resulting in extended imprisonment sentences varying from 30 to 112 years.

Despite his retirement from politics, Koroma still holds significant influence in his political party. The AP was informed by Information Minister Chernor Bah that numerous individuals who were detained regarding the attack had previously worked with the former president.

Sierra Leone has experienced political unrest since the reelection of Bio in a controversial vote that was accused by opposition members as being rigged. Police officials reported detaining senior military personnel, along with other individuals planning to use peaceful protests to destabilize peace just two months after his victory at the polls.

Despite ending more than two decades ago, Sierra Leone is still recovering from the 11-year civil war and its populace of 8 million ranks among the world’s poorest. Guinea, bordering it remains politically insecure following a coup in 2021.