The U.S. Embassy in Congo reported on Monday that Congolese authorities have not shared details or provided access to the Americans arrested following a coup attempt last month. This revelation comes amid pleas from one family desperately trying to confirm whether their son is alive.
Congo’s army has released the names of three Americans accused of participating in the May 19 attack led by little-known opposition figure Christian Malanga. The U.S. State Department has emphasized that one of its highest priorities is providing consular assistance to Americans detained abroad, including regular visits to ensure medical care and assistance in securing an English-speaking lawyer.
“We have requested DRC authorities grant consular access to any U.S. citizens who may have been detained and have not received it to date,” U.S. embassy spokesperson Greg Porter said in an email to The Associated Press.
Congolese authorities have yet to respond and have declined to disclose whether the Americans will appear in court. An army spokesman indicated that more details would be provided later.
Malanga, who had previously declared himself Congo’s president in exile, live-streamed the attempt to overthrow the government alongside his Utah-born son, Marcel Malanga, as they threatened President Felix Tshisekedi from inside the presidential palace. Malanga was reportedly shot dead for resisting arrest, according to the Congolese army. In total, six people were killed, and dozens were arrested.
The fate of the detained Americans remains unclear. A video circulating on social media showed a bound and bloodied Marcel as he was taken into custody, appearing alongside a second American, 21-year-old Tyler Thompson Jr., whom his family identified as a high school football teammate of Marcel’s.
Thompson flew to Africa with Marcel for what his family believed was a vacation, with all expenses paid by Malanga. Other teammates alleged that Marcel had offered up to $100,000 to join him on a “security job” in Congo. Last week, Thompson’s family told the AP they didn’t know if he was still alive.
Thompson’s family maintains he had no knowledge of the elder Malanga’s intentions, no plans for political activism, and no intention of entering Congo. They were only supposed to travel to South Africa and Eswatini, according to his stepmother, Miranda Thompson.
Marcel’s mother, Brittney Sawyer, has insisted her son is innocent and had merely followed his father.
