US Reveals Congolese Authorities Denied Access to Americans Detained Over Coup Attempt

The US Embassy in Congo revealed they have not been granted access to three American citizens detained for allegedly participating in last month’s coup attempt in the Central African country. The embassy, in its effort to fulfill the State Department’s duty of providing consular assistance to Americans detained on foreign soil, had reached out to DRC authorities for access to the detainees. However, their request was not granted. Meanwhile, the family of one of the detainees, Tyler Thompson Jr., deny he was a coupist. They claim he had flown with the family of the coup leader, Christian Malanga, on what they believed to be a vacation as he was friends with Malanga’s son Marcel. They also claimed he wasn’t aware of Malanga’s intentions and had no interest in political activism. At the moment, they have no idea what has happened to their son and whether he’s alive or dead.

SOURCE: AP NEWS