Published 15.40
Colonel Mambweni conspired to have Zaida Catalán murdered.
Now he is sentenced to death after the murder, reports SVT.
– We feel both relief and sadness, says sister Elizabeth Morseby to Aftonbladet.
In 2017, he was the Swedish UN expert Zaida Catalan on assignment i Congo-Kinshasa together with his American colleague Michael Sharp.
They were to document as they investigated suspected mass graves that had been discovered by UN soldiers and Zaida Catalán filmed along the way.
They never arrived. Instead, Zaida Catalán and Michael Sharp were captured and murdered.
On Friday, SVT reported that the military court in Congo-Kinshasa announced that they had sentenced Colonel Jean-De Dieu Mambweni to death for war crimes linked to, among other things, the murder of Zaida Catalán and Michael Sharp.
– It is a relief when there has been an important announcement from the court, but also sadness because it reminds us of everything we have lost, says Elizabeth Morseby.
“Hope everyone is held accountable”
She underlines:
– The death penalty is something that we in the family strongly oppose. Zaida was also against the death penalty. For us, this is not about any revenge, but that truth, responsibility and justice should come to light.
Over nine years have passed since Zaida Catalán was murdered and throughout the years the family has struggled to get answers – who is behind Zaida’s murder?
– We miss her every day and hope that this verdict can in some way bring us closer to the truth and contribute to getting closer to what happened. We hope that everyone who is somehow responsible is held accountable, says Elizabeth Morseby.
Come across logs
Mambweni was the most senior military officer in the area at the time of the murder.
In 2018, Mission review was able to reveal that Mambweni had conspired to have Zaida Catalán and Michael Sharp murdered. Among other things, UG had access to logs from his phone that showed contact with people who were singled out as having been behind the murders.
Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard writes in X that the verdict is “an important step to ensure justice
Zaida Catalán turned 36.
