A martial court in Goma, the capital city of North Kivu in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Friday sentenced to death three Congolese soldiers including an officer for fleeing recent battlefield against M23 rebels, a judicial report revealed.
Delivering judgement, the presiding judge at the martial court said the accused betrayed the trust and confidence reposed on them by the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC).
“The gravity of this misconduct must be sanctioned appropriately,” the military judge said.
One of the senior commanders of the Congolese army, Colonel Serge Mavinga was arrested recently after fleeing from the battlefield during fighting with M23 rebels, apparently abandoning his soldiers.
Col. Mavinga’s arrest comes after the military in the DRC court martialed two colonels for failing to prevent the fall of Bunagana town in Rutshuru territory to battle hardened M23 rebels.
According to details, the officers Colonels Désiré Lobo and Jean-Marie Diadia wa Diadia are commanders of the 3,412 and 3,307th regiments respectively.
They were charged with four counts: flight from the enemy, abandonment of weapons and ammunition, violation of instructions and embezzlement of public funds.
The defendants were in charge of military operations at the time of the fall of the city of Bunagana into the hands of the M23 in July.
They were fighting the M23 in the region of Tchengerero and Bunagana.
The prosecutor at the military court accuses them of having caused the fall of Bunagana, by abandoning weapons, ammunition but also by leaving certain army vehicles in the hands of the M23.
CU/as/APA