Court rules against handing Martinez Zogo’s corpse for burial

The remains of murdered journalist Martinez Zogo will not be buried anytime soon, as the Yaounde military court recently ruled against unsealing the corpse for burial by the family.

In a ruling delivered Monday, May 27, on a request for the corpse to be released for burial, the presiding judge of the Yaounde military court, Colonel Misse Njone Jacques Badouin, turned down the request on grounds of “lack of consensus by family members.”

The corpse of Journalist Martinez Zogo, who was brutally murdered in January 2023, are being kept in a morgue in Yaounde.

In April 2023, disagreements erupted amongst family members on wether the murdered journalist should be buried or not.

This provoked a reaction from the lawyer representing the widow of the late journalist.

“Only the late journalist’s wife, Diane Zogo, has the legal right to schedule his funeral,” said Barrister Calvin Job after a funeral was scheduled without the wife’s knowledge.

Diane Zogo had stated that she will “not permit her husband’s body to be buried until the government releases the findings of its investigations into his death.”

At least 17 suspects are standing trial for the murder, among them influential businessman Jean-Pierre Belinga Amougou; the former director of the military spy unit, Maxime Eko Eko; and the former head of operations of the spy unit, Justin Danwe.

The merit of the case is yet to kick off as matters of procedure have delayed the case on four occasions.

On Monday May 27, the court rejected a motion by defense and civil party lawyers to have full access to the case file.

Lawyers have promised to appeal against the ruling. The next hearing has been scheduled for June 17, 2024.

© Mimi Mefo Info