The French lawyer for Ousmane Sonko, (a major opposition party leader on Senegal), Juan Branco, is presently in police custody in Dakar over terrorism, conspiracy and public order charges, among several others, according to his lawyer on Sunday, August 6.
Branco was arrested in Mauritania and deported to Senegal on Saturday. Branco had been part of the team protecting Sonko, who was arrested in late July.
Sonko had been charged for plotting an insurrection, criminal conspiracy and other offences, two months after his rape trial sparked destructive riots across Senegal.
Following that, the Senegalese government issued an arrest warrant for Branco in July after he made a surprise appearance at a news conference hosted by Sonko’s legal team in Dakar.
Senegalese Interior Minister, Antoine Felix Abdoulaye Diome, had said:
“Juan Branco is for the meantime, in the hands of very capable police unit.”
Meanwhile Blanco’s lawyer, Robin Binsard had remarked that the legal proceedings were meant to silence the lawyer.
