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The "Bossembélé Case" Returns to the CPS

By Isidore M'BAYO | LNC Translated into English by Gwenaëlle DE LACAN

(Bangui, August 18, 2026 | LNC) Hearings at the Special Criminal Court (CPS) resumed on August 14 with the "Bossembélé case." At the heart of the proceedings lies the fate of Charles Massi, who disappeared in late 2009. The Court heard testimony from Pierre Massi, the victim's brother, who presented his account of the circumstances surrounding his brother's death. As the former minister's remains were never recovered, the defense has seized upon this lack of physical evidence. One of the defense lawyers, Guy-Rufin Pabingui, dismissed the accusations as "unfounded," arguing that the benefit of the doubt must go to his clients in the absence of forensic evidence substantiating a homicide. Conversely, for the victim's loved ones, the absence of a body is no mystery; rather, it reflects a deliberate attempt by the regime at the time to erase all traces of the crime. The hearings are scheduled to continue until October 2026. For the Massi family, the Court's verdict will serve as the only official "death certificate" they are ever likely to obtain. It will now be up to the CPS magistrates to resolve this painful clash of memory and law.

LNC

Date: August 18, 2026

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