Three US citizens sentenced to death in Congo over role in failed coup

Three U.S. citizens on trial for their role in a failed coup in Democratic Republic of Congo were sentenced to death by a military court on Friday.

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.

His son, Marcel Malanga, was among the Americans on trial, along with Marcel’s friend Tyler Thompson who played high school football with him in Utah. Both are in their 20s.

The third American, Benjamin Zalman-Polun, was a business associate of Christian Malanga.

All three were found guilty of criminal conspiracy, terrorism and other charges, and sentenced to death in a ruling read out on live TV.

Read more: Reuters