Congo’s army has identified the third American involved in a failed coup attempt targeting the presidential palace in Kinshasa. This comes as mourners in Utah gather to remember Christian Malanga, the leader of the attack, who was killed during the operation. Brig. Gen. Sylvain Ekenge named the third American as Taylor Thomson, although it remains unclear whether Thomson was among those arrested or killed on Sunday morning.
Christian Malanga, a naturalized American, led the coup attempt and was killed in a shootout after resisting arrest. The U.S. State Department has not confirmed his citizenship. The other two Americans involved were Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun, a convicted marijuana trafficker, and Malanga’s 21-year-old son, Marcel. Authorities are investigating how Marcel, who played high school football in Utah, became involved in the coup plot.
Brittney Sawyer, Marcel’s mother, insisted on her son’s innocence in an email to the Associated Press, expressing frustration over the situation. She had posted family photos on social media, showing a normal family life before these events.
Videos circulated over the weekend showing Marcel alongside a bloodied man, both covered in dust and surrounded by Congolese soldiers. At Malanga’s mother’s home in West Jordan, Utah, family members gathered to mourn Christian Malanga. Relatives described feeling heartbroken and were discussing plans for a possible funeral in Utah.
The Democratic Republic of Congo’s (DRC) armed forces repelled an attempted coup d’etat involving Congolese and foreign fighters on Sunday morning, a DRC army spokesperson said in a televised address..The army announces the arrest of American mercenaries. pic.twitter.com/Lfsv5FvINw
— African News feed. (@africansinnews) May 19, 2024
The connection between Malanga and Zalman-Polun appears to be through a gold mining venture in Mozambique. American businessman Cole Ducey, also involved in the company, distanced himself from the coup plot, stating he had not been in contact with Malanga or Zalman-Polun for two years and was shocked by the news.
The failed coup began with an attack on the residence of Vital Kamerhe, a federal legislator, where guards killed the attackers. Malanga live-streamed from the presidential palace before being killed. It remains unclear how the attackers managed to infiltrate such high-security areas.
Dino Mahtani, a former U.N. political adviser in Congo, suggested that Malanga may have been betrayed. He expressed skepticism about the group’s ability to take over the Congolese state with such a small force.
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