Africa-Press – Angola. The Court of the District of Belas, in Luanda, continued Thursday, the trial of 22 young people accused of vandalizing and burning public property, including the MPLA party committee in Benfica, crimes that occurred on January 10 2022.
Of the 22 accused, seven are in custody and 15 are free.
The defendants are implicated in 11 crimes, including disobedience to the order to disperse gatherings, public instigation to the crime of attacking the safety of public transport, threat and aggravated theft.
According to rules, the hearing of the defendants takes place, where the accused have the opportunity to present their version of their facts, so that they can then justify their participation or not in the case file, which they are accused of.
The trial takes place in the 14th section of the common crimes room of that court, with the prosecution lawyer, Avelino Pedro, telling the press that he hopes that the defendants who respond in freedom will be present in this 2nd section of the trial, due to the fact that they have not been present in the first.
According to the offended party’s assistant, in the first section that took place on the 24th of January, the Public Prosecutor’s Office issued a warrant for the arrest of the remaining accused, because they did not voluntarily appear at the trial.
“Let’s hope they attended, if not, the court should judge them in absentia, as they had the opportunity to have parole while the process continued”, said the assistant.
Another lawyer for the accused party, Gerson Bunga, lamented the fact that the prosecution’s assistants did not have the legitimacy of written powers, from this political formation, in order to legitimize them in the present trial.
During the vandalism and burning of the MPLA committee, 16 motorcycles, 20 laptop computers, more than 20 desktop computers, a semi-industrial generator and 12 air conditioners were stolen.
On the same day, a Ministry of Health bus, which circulated nearby, was also vandalized and burned.
Damages are estimated at 93 million, 892 thousand, 55 kwanzas and 52 cents.
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