Africa coup-plotter Simon Mann pardoned

Published: Nov. 3, 2009 at 8:57 AM

LONDON, Nov. 3 (UPI) -- British coup-plotter Simon Mann has been pardoned by Equatorial Guinea on health grounds after nearly two years in jail, officials say.

A statement posted on Equatorial Guinea's Ministry of Information Web site said Mann, a former British commando who led a group of more than 60 mainly South African mercenaries five years ago in a plot to overthrow President Teodoro Obiang Nguema, had been released on humanitarian grounds, The Times of London reported Tuesday.

"The pardon was allowed for by presidential decree and granted on humanitarian grounds," the Times reported the statement saying. It cited Mann's medical needs and added that he had "shown sufficient and credible signs of repentance and a desire to take his place in society."

A statement read on national radio indicated Mann, 57, had been granted "total amnesty" and that he must leave Equatorial Guinea within 24 hours.

The Daily Mail reported a businessman who was allegedly part of the coup plot led two months of negotiations with the Equatoguinean Embassy in London.

The coup plot involved Mark Thatcher, son of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who pleaded guilty in South Africa to unwittingly helping bankroll the operation, The New York Times reported.

© 2009 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Order reprints


Additional News Stories
Ford exec: Profit shows turnaround (10 min)
COL BKB: Georgia Tech 85, Boston U. 67 (16 min)
'Old GM' to get $1.875M in settlement (23 min)
NFL: Jacksonville 18, Buffalo 15 (25 min)
NFL: Minnesota 35, Seattle 9 (44 min)
Hundreds turn out for model competition (46 min)
COL BKB: Louisville 90, Morgan State 81
fark
Kid with terminal cancer is close to death and doesn't want to burden his family with restoring...
Georgia's Supreme Court made it legal for 16-year-olds to fark their teachers last year, but wouldn't...
When your guys are already out there on camera beating up protesters and gadflies, it's a really...
Design a patch for the final shuttle mission. Difficulty: has to include mission number STS-134
Another sign of a reviving economy: Michael Jackson's glove sells for $350,000, his fedora for $22,000...
Flooding continues in Lancashire. Maybe if they drilled some drainage holes...about 4,000 should...