Three Americans Involved In DRC Coup Attempt Last Year Back in U.S.

Three Americans who participated in a failed coup attempt in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) last year have been transferred to the United States.

The three men were among 37 in total who were sentenced to death last year for their role in the May 19, 2024 coup attempt.

According to a spokeswoman for the Congolese Government, Tina Salama, the men were “evacuated to the United States to serve their sentences there”. 

Last week, Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi commuted the sentence of the three men from death to a life sentence.

Among the three men is Marcel Malanga, 22, who is the son of Congolese opposition leader, Christian Malanga, who was killed during the coup attempt.

The two other men are Tyler Thompson, 21 and Benjamin Zalman-Polun, 37. 

The release comes as the U.S. has been in discussion with the DRC regarding a possible deal on rare earth minerals. With U.S. President Donald Trump’s Africa advisor, Massad Boulos, travelling to the DRC last week to meet with Tshisekedi.

At the meeting, Boulos stated that they had reviewed a proposal by the DRC and will be moving forward on developing the deal.

The tentative deal may also be about the DRC getting U.S. security assistance in return. In the last couple months, M23 rebels captured the two largest cities in the eastern DRC, Bukavu and Goma. 

The DRC had originally offered the U.S. a “mineral for security” deal last month as the rebels were advancing in the east. The country is considered one of the most mineral rich countries in the world, and comes at a time where Donald Trump seeks to increase U.S. access to these valuable minerals.