Martinez Zogo affair: Drama as Amougou Belinga, Eko Eko, ‘freed’, maintained in detention.

On Friday December 1, two documents emerged revealing extreme developments. Both decisions bore the name and signature of Magistrate Sikati II Kamwo Florent Aime, Vice President of the Yaounde Military Tribunal.

The first document with reference No.080/OR/CI/SIK/YMY, ordered the release of businessman, Jean Pierre Amougou Belinga and police Commissioner, Leopold Maxime Eko Eko, Director General of External Research, popularly known by its French abbreviation DGRE. 

Eko Eko and Amougou Belinga have been in detention since March 3 this year. Both personalities are two of three key names in pre-trial detention for complicity in the torture and killing of Zogo. 

Without anyone owning up to the document, its surfacing swept across the social media sparking varied reactions, on and offline. 

In addition to the decision, additional documents emerged including a ruling, ordering the Registrar of the Yaounde Principal Prison to immediately free the duo. 

Other documents also surfaced online individually addressed to the counsels of Amougou Belinga and Leopold Maxim Eko Eko, indicating that they had to be freed. 

This carried the signature of the Registrar of the Yaounde Military Court, Nkoa Jean Didier. It was also dated December 1.

Amougou Belinga Jean Pierre

Court disowns bail order?

While public opinion was yet to digest what was happening, another document tagged “confidential”, surfaced again online, debunking the release order for Amougou Belinga and Eko Eko. 

Like the one debunked, the document was also dated Friday, December 1. It came hours after the first. It carried the name and signature of the Presiding Military Judge, Sikati II Kamwo Florent Aime.

In the letter addressed to the State Prosecutor at the Yaounde Military Court, with reference No.073/L/CLSIK/TMY, the release order is termed fake.

The document attributed to Magistrate Sikate II indicated that: “I have the honour to inform you that the release order circulating on social media since this afternoon, concerning the following; Eko Eko Leopold Maxime and Amougou Belinga Jean Pierre, is not authentic”. 

The note specified that a decision on the matter will come at the appropriate time.

Social media noise after all or political power play?

The reactions that sparked Friday ended up changing nothing. Findings show that neither Amougou Belinga nor Eko Eko was freed. 

They are rather still in detention at the Yaounde Principal Prison, where they are awaiting trial.

With no official statement from the Ministry of Justice, the turn of things has been left to public opinion. 

Many have been making different interpretations of what happened Friday. While some hold the view that it was a social media buzz that changed nothing, there are those who are picturing power play from higher quarters in the matter.

Police Commissioner Leopold Maxime Eko Eko

Counsels say twists, turns scandalous

In the phase of the contrasting views as to whether the release order was fake or real, counsels of Eko Eko and Amougou Belinga say they are suspecting foul play. 

In different reactions, the lawyers claimed the release order actually came from the Military Court.

Amougou Belinga’s lawyer, Charles Tchoungang, in an interview granted Radio France Internationale, RFI, described what happened on Friday as a “judicial and republican scandal”.

“I just came out of the Tribunal. The document is authentic 100 %,”  Tchoungang told  RFI,  adding  that he went to follow up his client’s release but was told those concerned were in a meeting but shortly  after, he got news that the release order had been termed fake.

Tchoungang added that: “A judge cannot retract his own decision. It is impossible. The decision may be overturned on appeal, except that in this case, there is no possible appeal in matters of warrant. This is a judicial and republican scandal”.

He lamented that the development “is an attack on the independence of the judiciary. It is an insult to the intelligence of the children of this country. It is unacceptable”. 

Meanwhile, the group of lawyers defending Eko Eko, is said to have issued a statement, indicating that the court actually notified them of the decision to free the senior police officer.

They group of counsels wrote that it was served through established legal channels.  

The release order, it said, had been welcomed as it fell within the powers granted the examining magistrate as per the law in place.

Key snippets 

Martinez Zogo was journalist at Yaounde-based Amplitude FM. He had taken key interest in indicting officials, accusing them of corruption and embezzlement. 

On January 17, 2023, he was declared missing. His corpse was later discovered five days after around Soa, on the outskirts of Yaounde.

The discovery of the corpse sparked national and international outrage. President Paul Biya later created a mixed Gendarmerie-police commission to investigate the killing. 

On February 6, 2023, Amougou Belinga was arrested alongside several other suspects.  

He spent days at the State Secretariat for Defense, SED, before being sent to pre-trial detention on March 3. Martinez Zogo is still to be buried.