Sierra Leone Coup Driver Sentenced To 182 Years In Prison

UNSPLASH/Umanoide ILLUSTRATION

Amadu Koita Makalo, one of the failed coup organizers in Sierra Leone by the end of 2023, has been sentenced to a total of 182 years in prison, local broadcaster AYV News reported.

Reported by Antara from Sputnik-OANA, Tuesday, June 23, Makalo, who is known as an opposition figure and former presidential guard Ernest Bai Koroma, was found guilty of his betrayal of the state and sentenced to consecutive prison terms of 52, 60, and 70 years on several charges, the broadcaster said on Monday.

Earlier, Sierraloaded news portal reported that along with Makalo, the Sierra Leonean court also found 11 other people guilty of the coup attempt, including former police officers and correctional officers. Their sentence has not been announced.

On November 26, 2023, Sierra Leone authorities imposed curfews across the country after an unknown group of people attempted to seize an arsenal in the nation's capital, Freetown.

Several large detention centers, including the Padema Road prison in the capital, were reportedly attacked. To protect civilians, security forces were forced to resign, which led to the prison being controlled by the attack group. The attackers then kidnapped several detainees and released more of the detainees. Government forces then defeated the attackers and managed to secure the city. Koroma, who is suspected of being involved in a coup attempt, reportedly fled to Nigeria in January.