U.S. citizens in Congo coup attempt tell court they were forced to join

6/7/2024 6:21

        Two U.S. citizens on trial in the Democratic Republic of Congo over their role in an attempted coup in May, told a court on Friday that they were threatened by the coup leader to either join or be killed.
        
        Armed men briefly occupied an office of the presidency in the capital Kinshasa on May 19 before their leader, U.S.-based Congolese politician Christian Malanga, was killed by security forces.
        
        Speaking for the first time since the trial began, Malanga's son Marcel Malanga, 22, and Benjamin Zalman-Polun told the court that the coup leader had threatened them.
        
        "Dad had threatened to kill us if we did not follow his orders," Malanga told a military court, denying they had any involvement in plotting the coup attempt.
        
        He said he had come to Congo to see his father, whom he had not seen since 2021, at his invitation, adding he had not visited the country before.