According to the authorities and his attorneys, French-Spanish lawyer Juan Branco, who was detained in Dakar on Sunday in connection with recent violence in Senegal, was freed on Monday under judicial surveillance before being expelled.
After several days of searching, Mr. Branco was captured on Friday night in Mauritania. He had entered Senegal illegally a few days prior to participate in the defense of opposition lawmaker Ousmane Sonko despite a warrant for his arrest. He was turned over to the Senegalese government and imprisoned on Sunday for a number of reasons.
According to Robin Binsard, one of his attorneys, “He was taken from prison this morning (Monday) and presented to the judge, who informed him that he had been placed under judicial supervision.” He claimed that after that, he was given up to the police for deportation.
Senegal’s Minister of Justice, Isma’la Madior Fall, told the press that “the Minister of the Interior has issued an order to deport him (…) In the next few hours, he should leave Senegal.”
Mr. Binsard continued, “He is relieved yet fatigued. The ministry claimed that Mr. Branco had refused to consume any food or liquids while being held.
On Sunday, charges against Mr. Branco included an attack, conspiracy, disseminating untrue information, acts and omissions likely to threaten public security or ignite significant political upheaval, and unlawful habitation.
The activities of the Spanish-French attorney, who gained notoriety in the nation by participating in the defense of Ousmane Sonko, a rival who has been involved in a standoff with the police enforcement and the courts since 2021, have been taken extremely seriously by the authorities. The battle between Mr. Sonko, a candidate for president in 2024, and the government has led to a number of tragic violent outbursts.
When Mr. Branco declared in June that he had filed a complaint against Senegalese President Macky Sall in France for “crimes against humanity” at a time when the nation had recently gone through its worst turmoil in years, the move garnered particular attention. Additionally, he requested that Mr. Sall be looked into by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.
His scathing criticisms of the Senegalese regime are well known.
Establishing a “example”
An international arrest order and a Senegalese judicial inquiry have been focusing on Mr. Branco since mid-July.
He has been labeled by the administration as a publicity-hungry lawyer who has exacerbated recent tensions in the nation. The Minister of Justice claimed that he “tried to experiment with his theory of revolution and insurrection in Senegal”.
When the attorney unexpectedly showed up at a press conference of Mr. Sonko’s attorneys on July 30, two days after Mr. Sonko had been arrested and was scheduled to be held on a variety of accusations, including inciting a riot, the authorities took it very seriously.
According to the Senegalese media, Mr. Branco later vanished before being apprehended on Sunday in Mauritania under mysterious circumstances while aboard a pirogue and dressed as a fisherman.
Some of the accusations against Mr. Branco, according to the minister, are criminal in character. “He could have been kept in custody for years,” he claimed.
He guaranteed that the proceedings would still go through notwithstanding the release. The minister stated that “all the investigative steps will be taken; second, it is possible that his judicial supervision will be revoked; third, he may be tried; and, finally, he could be sentenced; and fourth, because of our judicial cooperation relations with France, he could serve his sentence there.
However, he continued, “what was crucial in this case was that Senegal demonstrate its sovereignty and set an example.
Mr. Branco was qualified for assistance from the French and Spanish consulates.
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