Mali: Ex-intelligence chief sentenced to 15 years in jail

Ex-intelligence chief Kassoum Goita was sentenced to 15 years in prison on July 24th, as reported by Africa News via AFP on July 24th,

Colonel Goita, who has no links to current junta leader General Assimi Goita, was convicted of “conspiracy against the government”, following a 10-day trial in which he accused the junta of conspiracy, torture and corruption. 

Goita was arrested in late 2021 by the transitional government that ousted the former provisional president Bah N’Daw in April 2021.

Alongside five other important advisors to the ex-president, he was tried for conspiracy and has been held in prison in notably cruel conditions for the past five years.

The trial began on July 13th and was marked by intense testimonies of the accused. All ex-advisors were heard, most of them depicting torture for the past five years as well as a corrupt current military government. 

The six advisors were notably accused of plotting to extend the first provisional government and set themselves as permanent figures.

According to Goita’s defence, ex-transitional president Bah N’Daw did not intend to remain president, and the entire government hoped for democratic elections.

He then accused the military putschists of having embezzled public funds during the pre-2020 coup era, under Ibrahim Boubacar Keita’s government, by placing them on offshore accounts with the help of the current minister of the economy, Alousseni Sanou.

Ex-president Bah N’Daw would have asked the military men to put the funds back, but without success. 

According to TV5 Monde, the six accused will face prison sentences ranging from five to 15 years.

Abdoulaye Ball and Issa Samake were found guilty of conspiracy against the government and criminal association, resulting in a 15-year sentence. Two other accused left the trial with a seven-year sentence for complicity in conspiracy. 

One of the accused’s lawyers told the AFP that they “are not surprised by the verdict. We will exhaust all domestic legal remedies before turning to other institutions”.

Africa News via AFP, TV5 Monde and agencies, Maghrebi.org