MOZAMBIQUE: WILL NYIMPINE CHISSANO FACE TRIAL FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L MAPUTO 000650 SIPDIS SIPDIS AF/S FOR HTREGER INR/AF FOR SWIGERT DOJ FOR CRODRIGUES E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/01/2016 TAGS: KCOR KCRM MZ SUBJECT: MOZAMBIQUE: WILL NYIMPINE CHISSANO FACE TRIAL FOR THE MURDER OF CARLOS CARDOSO? REF: A. MAPUTO 106 ¶B. 05 MAPUTO 1569 Classified By: Ambassador Helen La Lime for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) ¶1. (U) The eldest son of former Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano, Nyimpine Chissano, has been formally charged in the November 2000 murder of Mozambique's foremost investigative journalist, Carlos Cardoso. According to press reports, Chissano Jr. is accused of "joint moral authorship" of Cardoso's murder, for which Anibal dos Santos Junior ("Anibalzinho") and six others were previously tried and convicted (refs). The indictment also accused Chissano of "various economic crimes;" however, specific details on those allegations were not given. Though the formal charges were reportedly brought at the end of April, they were not made public until mid-May. ¶2. (SBU) Background: The investigation into Chissano's connection to the Cardoso murder began in September 2002 when Momade Assif Abdul Satar ("Nini"),one of the men eventually charged with the murder, claimed that it was Chissano who had ordered the killing, and that he had merely acted as a go-between. (Note: Nyimpine is widely believed to have been incensed over articles by Cardoso -- stories about Nympine's involvement in various scandals and his carousing and, at times, outrageous behavior (trashing a police post, for example). End Note.) Nini asserted during his 2002 trial that a set of post-dated checks totaling approximately USD 46,000 were personally given to him by Chissano to pay Anibalzinho for the murder of Cardoso. A case on Chissano was opened in late 2002, though little seemed to come of it for more than three years, which led to accusations in the media and by the public that the prosecutor's office had no intention of taking measures against Chissano. Chissano has continually maintained his innocence, stating that the checks were given to a business associate, Candida Cossa, to cover a loan taken out for a business interest. ¶3. (SBU) What happens next is a question for the Attorney General's Office. Under Mozambican criminal law, the filing of formal charges is the first in a three-phase judicial process ("proditoria," "contradictoria," and "julgamento"). The case now enters the second, contraditoria, phase, under which the defense has the opportunity to respond to the charges. This phase is slated to last approximately four months, following which the Attorney General will review the case and determine whether it is compelling enough to bring to trial (julgamento). As such, a decision on whether Chissano will face a trial could come as early as August. ¶4. (C) Comment: In the weeks following the announcement, a flurry of reports appeared in both the Mozambican media and a handful of international press outlets. Nevertheless, public interest in the case remains relatively muted as many Mozambicans doubt much will come of it. During a June 1 meeting with emboffs, Dr. Rafael Sebastiao, Head of the Attorney Genera's Central Office for the Combat of Corruption, admitted that he was disillusioned by the Mozambican judicial system, implying that he did not believe Chissano would ever face a trial for his alleged involvement in the murder scheme. Despite this and low public expectations, it is a positive sign that the prosecutor's office has at least taken steps to move this high-profile case from desk to docket. La Lime