Martinez Zogo Murder Trial Resumes With Key Witness After Disputed Postponement

email facebook twitter Lieutenant Colonel Dieudonné Bialo is expected to return to the Yaoundé Military Tribunal on Monday, October 12, 2026, to continue his testimony in the trial over the murder of journalist Martinez Zogo. His cross-examination, originally scheduled for October 5, was postponed at the prosecution’s request after officials said he was away on an assignment in Algeria. The decision drew objections from defense lawyers, who questioned the circumstances of his absence.

To justify the postponement, the government commissioner presented a travel authorization covering October 2–8. According to information discussed in court, the document had reportedly been issued on May 11, 2026, although prosecutors maintained that they only learned of the witness’s unavailability on the morning of October 5.

Charles Tchoungang, a lawyer for defendant Jean-Pierre Amougou Belinga, questioned the document’s authenticity and opposed the postponement. He also challenged the circumstances under which an officer already scheduled to testify had been allowed to leave on an official assignment without notifying the court in advance. After hearing arguments from both sides, the tribunal adjourned proceedings until October 12 and 13.

Bialo, who heads the National Gendarmerie’s Central Judicial Investigations Service, began his testimony on September 15. He described the technical investigations conducted after Martinez Zogo disappeared, particularly the analysis of telephone records and surveillance camera footage. According to his testimony, investigators compared these records and identified a possible connection between a vehicle attributed to Lieutenant Colonel Justin Danwe and the route taken by the group involved in the journalist’s abduction.

The officer also testified that Léopold Maxime Eko Eko, former director general of the Directorate General for External Research (DGRE), had allegedly implicated Jean-Pierre Amougou Belinga and Justin Danwe during questioning on January 31, 2023, identifying them as the people who ordered the operation. Bialo further stated that investigators suspected the former intelligence chief had prior knowledge of the operation. The significance of these statements remains for the court to assess, and they are central to the dispute over the defendants’ respective responsibilities.

Another sensitive issue involves a phone attributed to Jean-Pierre Amougou Belinga that investigators have been unable to locate. According to Bialo, the device may have contained a video of Martinez Zogo that was shared among some of those involved in the case. However, the officer acknowledged that investigators had not found the video on any of the phones they examined.

The trial, which opened on March 25, 2024, involves 17 defendants, including intelligence officials and businessman Jean-Pierre Amougou Belinga. The resumption of Bialo’s testimony will allow defense lawyers to continue questioning him about the technical evidence and statements collected during the investigation.

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