08-04-2025
Congo repatriates Utahns spared death penalty after failed coup
Two Utah men and another man facing the death penalty for participating in a failed coup in Congo last year were repatriated to the United States after their sentences were commuted to life in prison.
Congolese presidential spokesperson Tina Salama posted Tuesday on X that the three men were returned to the U.S. to serve their sentences in collaboration with the U.S. Embassy after receiving presidential pardons that commuted their sentences to life imprisonment. The presidency said they left Congo on Tuesday, per The Associated Press.
The two Utahns are Marcel Malanga, 21, and Tyler Thompson, 21, who played football together at Copper Hills High School in West Jordan. Thompson flew to Africa from Utah for what his family believed was a free vacation, the AP reported.
Thompson's family issued a statement Tuesday saying they are grateful for the support they've received worldwide from family, friends, congressmen and the U.S. government.
'We are grateful to all involved and the hours spent to facilitate Tyler's, and the other two Americans', return to the United States following the commutation of their death sentences in the Democratic Republic of Congo where they have been imprisoned since May of last year. We will continue to work with all involved agencies upon Tyler's return. Our primary focus at this time is Tyler's physical and mental well-being,' the statement read.
Malanga is the son of Christian Malanga, a former Utah car salesman with eight children and a businessman and politician from Congo who led the foiled coup attempt.
The coup took place near the offices of President Felix Tshisekedi in Kinshasa, the nation's capital, in May 2024. The elder Malanga livestreamed video from the presidential palace during the coup and was killed while resisting arrest, according to Congolese authorities.
The third man is Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun, 36, who is reported to have known Christian Malanga through a gold mining company, the AP reported.
Christian Malanga moved from Congo to the U.S. as part of a refugee resettlement program in the late 1990s and attended Highland High School in Salt Lake City, according to his Facebook page. He returned to his native country to serve as an officer fighting rebels. Forced into exile in 2012 following an initial coup attempt, he referred to himself as president of the 'New Zaire' government.
Malanga claimed he was the president of the United Congolese Party, which describes itself as an 'opposition political party-in-exile.' He appeared in a 2014 Deseret News story about an Ebola outbreak in Africa.
According to news reports, witnesses described about 40 people in at least seven vehicles attacking the home of Economy Minister Vital Kamerhe. The attackers used drones and automatic weapons. Kamerhe's guards held off the attack for an hour, when security forces arrived. Two of the minister's guards were killed, as were two attackers.
Dozens of others were convicted after the coup attempt, a majority of them Congolese and also including a Briton, a Belgian and a Canadian, the AP reported. Charges included terrorism, murder, criminal association and illegal possession of weapons.
AP reported last year that family members said the Utah men slept on the floor at a high-security military prison in Kinshasa, struggling with health issues and having to pay for food and hygiene products.
The pardon and repatriation of the three men came as Congolese authorities aim to sign a minerals deal with the U.S. in exchange for security support that will help Kinshasa fight rebels in the country's conflict-hit east, per AP.
President Donald Trump's senior adviser for Africa last week confirmed the countries were in talks on the issue and said it could involve 'multi-billion dollar investments,' the AP reported. The U.S. has estimated Congo has trillions of dollars in mineral wealth, much of it untapped.
'This decision is part of a dynamic of strengthening judicial diplomacy and international cooperation in matters of justice and human rights between the two countries,' according to a statement from Congo's presidency.
