Belinga’s lawyer says there is international campaign to sabotage his innocent client

The defense counsel of Jean Pierre Amougou Belinga, Charles Tchougang, has said many stories which are being relayed on the media about his client’s involvement in Martinez Zogos’s murder are not true and precises that his client is being unjustly detained at the state secretariat for defense in charge of the national Gendarmerie (SED).

This was during a press briefing the counsel organised on February 17th at the Ekang building in Yaounde.

“If you knew what we know in this file, 90% of what is written or published on the media is unfounded,” said Charles Tchougang.

He also denounced the information carried by Equinoxe Tv and Reporters Without Borders, which claimed that Colonel Nsoe gave out information in exchange of guaranteed security for his family. According the these two channels, Nsoe affirmed the involvement of Jean Pierre Amougou Belinga and his collaborators in the kidnapping and assassination of Martinez Zogo.

“I want to disprove with utmost reservation the affirmation made by Mr. Zogo of Equinoxe, where he claims that Colonel Nsoe had negotiated the security of his family and that in return he would make deep statements confirming Colonel Danwe’s statements. I wanted to deny them because we are also his lawyers,” he said.

“I can no longer accept that my customers are dragged into the mud by people who do gutter journalism. People who should go to the source to look for the right information but prefer to invent scenarios,” Charles Tchougang added.

According to the lawyer, Equinox could have approached him to ask for information or confirmation of the information received.

“This is unacceptable. This is not acceptable. I am saying this here as loudly as they are my friends. They have my phone number. Guy Zogo that I know could call me on the phone to ask me if I confirm or deny”, reacted Charles Tchougang.

He also denounced a parallel investigation carried out by the SED in the absence of the Police whereas a joint Police-Gendarmerie commission had been set up by President Biya and says the commissioner of the government is not even aware of this so-called investigation.

He also mentioned that the whole procedure was irregular from the start – from the arrest of his client at 5AM without a prior notification or document asking him to be present at SED, to the raiding of his home without a search warrant and even the arrest of his collaborators who he the lawyer says were isolated and intimidated for no reason.

Charles Tchoungang ended the press briefing by reiterating that his client, Amougou Belinga is innocent and discouraged the audience frm listening to what he called “fake news” spread on the internet.