By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Prosecutors in Burundi have urged the court to sentence a former Prime Minister, Alain-Guillaume Bunyoni to life imprisonment for allegedly using witchcraft to threaten the president’s life.
Mr Bunyoni who is standing trial on seven-count charges was docked in September.
His prosecution came a year after he was fired by President Evariste Ndayishimiye over suspicions that Mr Bunyoni was plotting a “coup” against him.
Mr Bunyoni is also accused of undermining national security, subverting government institutions, destabilising the economy and enriching himself through illegal means.
The former Prime Minister has however pleaded not guilty to all charges and asked the court to acquit him, citing lack of tangible evidence against him.
Prosecutor Jean-Bosco Bucumi also called for Mr Bunyoni to pay “damages equivalent to twice the value of the 153 houses and plots of land and the 43 vehicles belonging to him”, in addition to a fine of 7.1m Burundian francs ($2,400; £2,000), AFP news agency reported.
The prosecution also requested 30-year sentences for the six co-accused, which include a police colonel and a senior intelligence agent.
