State Department's spokesperson Tammy Bruce confirms 3 Americans who had faced death sentences over a failed coup plot in Congo are now in US custody.
The three will serve their sentences in the US following the repatriation.
Among the three Americans was 21-year-old Marcel Malanga, son of opposition figure Christian Malanga, who led the foiled coup attempt that targeted the presidential palace in Kinshasa.
The elder Malanga, who livestreamed from the palace during the attempt, was later killed while resisting arrest, Congolese authorities said. Marcel Malanga has said his father forced him to take part.
Also repatriated were Tyler Thompson Jr., 21, a friend of the younger Malanga who flew to Africa from Utah for what his family believed was a free vacation, and Benjamin Reuben Zalman-Polun, 36, who is reported to have known Christian Malanga through a gold mining company.
The pardon and repatriation came amid efforts by Congolese authorities to sign a minerals deal with the US in exchange for security support that will help Kinshasa fight rebels in the country's conflict-hit east.
(AP)
