The trial in the “charbon fin” (“fine coal”) case resumed on Thursday 5 October 2023 in Ouagadougou. At the opening of the hearing, the defence asked for the case to be adjourned to another date because their clients had not received the summons to appear within the time limit set out in the Code of Criminal Procedure.
The prosecutor categorically opposed this referral. He considered that the defence had had sufficient time, 5 years, to prepare the defence of their clients.
In Essakane, not all those prosecuted recognise the facts
The case was finally accepted by the judge and the trial began in earnest.
Like Essakane, all those prosecuted in this case do not recognise the charges against them.
The debates centred on the nature of the solids found in the fine coal. The defence lawyers noted that in addition to the fine coal, solids weighing more than 100 kg were found in the load. They argued that, at this stage, the analyses do not allow these materials to be classified. But the prosecutor and the lawyers for the civil party stated with certainty that it was indeed gold, and specifically gold ingots.
The prosecutor said that if there were still doubts, the experts could carry out an analysis of these materials, which were described as solid bodies, on site in order to dispel the doubts. The defence lawyers returned to the case. In their view, the public prosecutor should not have been part of this trial, since under the law, magistrates must not have spent more than 5 years in a court. They called for another magistrate to be appointed to the public prosecutor’s office.
For the 2 experts, the analysis is not yet complete
The court asked for the hearing to be suspended for 5 minutes because the proceedings were being held.
At the resumption, the defence’s request to appoint another magistrate to the public prosecutor’s office was rejected. The president of the court considered that he had no prerogative to issue a ruling on the termination of a magistrate’s service.
While the defence lawyers believe that the lack of analysis of the solid bodies identified in the cargo means that the trial cannot go ahead, the prosecutor has indicated that the experts can carry out the analysis on site to remove any doubts.
In their response, the lawyers for the defence (especially the Essakane mine) said: “If the expert report could be done in court, why did we have to spend almost 1 billion FCFA on it? We need to be told what our money was spent on. What’s more, we need to be given the financial report on the survey. If we don’t have this report, we won’t be able to defend our case”.
“I’ve heard you talk about percentages, contents and moisture content. Sorry. You’re not competent to give an opinion on these things. That’s why experts have been appointed. I’ve heard people say that there’s gold in fine coal and that you can see it with the naked eye. If gold can be seen with the naked eye, I don’t know what BUMIGEB is for”, a defence lawyer told the presiding judge.
“These solid bodies must take the stand to edify the court and everyone else. These solid bodies are gold”, said the prosecutor.
A university professor specialising in chemistry suggests another, easier and faster method of analysis
The debates on these solid bodies in the load were so heated that 02 experts were called to the stand. These experts stated that the examination was not yet complete. At this stage, further analyses are required to determine the nature and content of the solids. They also stated that only the method they proposed could determine the nature and content of the solids.
But the prosecutor called in another expert, a professor at Joseph KI Zerbo University, a specialist in chemistry, who said the opposite. He proposed another method, which he described as easier and quicker, for analysing solid bodies.
The president of the court finally suspended the hearing. It will resume tomorrow 6 October 2023 at 9:00 am to allow the cargo containing the solid bodies to be presented so that the court can rule.
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