Soldiers sprang officials of ousted government from jail

Soldiers forced open the doors of Abidjan’s main prison, the Maca, on Tuesday and ordered about six former state officials detained in connection with an ongoing corruption inquiry to leave the prison, ‘Fraternite Matin’ reported on Friday. The soldiers’ action was reminiscent of the 23-24 December mutiny during which the mutineers released political prisoners jailed by the regime of then President Henri Konan Bedie from the Maca. The six were detained under ‘Operation Mains Propres’ (Clean Hands Operation) launched earlier this year by the military-led government to recover funds allegedly misappropriated during the Bedie regime. Fraternite Matin reported that the soldiers forced the unwilling detainees to leave la Maca and that the judicial authorities were appealing to them to return to jail.