Justice Minister Charles Wright confirmed that Moussa Dadis Camara, the ex-leader of Guinea’s 2008 military junta, was freed from confinement in Conakry during the early hours of Saturday. He was liberated alongside three other senior officers by heavily armed individuals.
According to local residents who informed media, military vehicles and special forces were observed patrolling the streets of the Guinean capital following reports of gunshots in the Kaloum administrative district. This district housed Camara and other detainees at the Central House prison.
“It was around 0500 (0500 GMT) that heavily armed men burst into the Central House of Conakry. They managed to leave with four defendants in the trial of the events of Sept. 28 including Captain Moussa Dadis Camara,” the minister said on the radio.
“They will be found wherever they are,” he said, declining to give further details of the investigation.
To prevent the escape of the individuals who broke free, Guinea has closed its borders, as confirmed by the statement.
Camara and his co-defendants have been undergoing a trial since the previous year, facing charges related to their alleged involvement in a stadium massacre and large-scale sexual assaults committed by Guinean security forces. These events occurred during a pro-democracy rally on September 28, 2009, resulting in the loss of 150 lives.
Camara has denied culpability, attributing the atrocities to rogue soldiers.
According to residents in the vicinity of Kaloum, gunshots were initially reported at approximately 4 a.m. local time, leading to an increase in security presence on the streets and the closure of the entrance to Kaloum.
Towards late morning, the capital exhibited a sense of tranquility, although several soldiers remained stationed in specific locations, instructing residents to remain indoors, as reported by Mmah Camara, a resident of the Tombo district, via telephone.
Guinea is under the leadership of military ruler Mamady Doumbouya, who assumed power through a coup in 2021. This event is one of eight coups that have occurred in West and Central Africa over the past three years. Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Chad, and Gabon are among the countries also being governed by military officials.
