Would Vital Kamerhe be saved by the Court of Cassation of Kinshasa after having about two years in Makala prison?
The Court of Cassation on Monday, April 11 overturned the decision of Court Appeal, which the decision condemned the former director of cabinet of President Félix Tshisekedi, Vital Kamerhe to 13 years of forced labour.
This contains in the judgment of the Court of Cassation where delivered this Monday, April 11, 2022.
According to Okapi Radio, it was during a short closed-door hearing this same Monday.
The judges decision seems to be motivated by the fact that the judgment of the Court of Appeal was tainted with procedural defects. In fact, the Court of Appeal had continued to judge Kamerhe while the latter had challenged its composition and had already seized the Constitutional Court, indicates Okapi Radio.
The Court of Cassation thinks that the Kinshasa / Gombe Court of Appeal would have violated article 104 of the code of criminal procedure, by examining the file when it was not ready.
Pursued the Okapi Radio website, the Court of Cassation also underlined the fact that the appeal court ruled on the basis of a notification of the hearing date when it should have cited the defendant, which constitutes also a violation of the right of defence provided for an Article 19 of the Constitution.
The case is sent back to the Kinshasa / Gombe Court of Appeal, but this time with another composition in order to retry the case on its merits, concludes Okapi Radio.
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