Lieutenant General Franck Ntumba, who heads military operations in the office of President Félix Antoine Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been reported arrested, according to sources from the country.
Reports indicate that the General was arrested on Wednesday, July 16, before being interrogated by the National Security Council (CNS) of the DRC.
It is reported that Ntumba, like other military officers recently arrested, is being investigated for allegedly plotting to overthrow President Félix Antoine Tshisekedi. However, other reports suggest he may also be under investigation for the embezzlement of large sums of money.
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Lt. Gen. Franck Ntumba was arrested six months after President Félix Antoine Tshisekedi was informed of a coup plan against him.
The British news agency Reuters recently reported that Moti Kahana, a businessman holding both Israeli and American citizenship, was the one who informed Tshisekedi that Ntumba was plotting to overthrow him in collaboration with some Israelis. This information was reportedly shared during the World Economic Forum held in Davos, Switzerland, in January this year.
The arrest of Lt. Gen. Ntumba adds to the growing list of senior military officers detained, including Lt. Gen. Jean-Claude Yav Kabeya, who previously led military operations in Tshisekedi’s office (and whom Ntumba replaced in 2023), Gen. Christian Tshiwewe Songesa, former Chief of Staff of the DRC Armed Forces, and Major General Maurice Nyembo, former head of Tshiwewe’s office.
Augustin Kabuya, Secretary-General of the ruling UDPS party in the DRC, recently confirmed that Tshiwewe had intended to assassinate Tshisekedi, and that he confessed this during questioning by the CNS.