Cameroonian separatist leader Lucas Yabah Cho, better known by his activist name Ayaba Cho, will have to spend an additional month in pretrial detention.
This decision was taken by the Norwegian courts on February 10, following the third extension of his detention. According to Emmanuel Nsahlai, the American lawyer of Cameroonian origin who initiated Ayaba Cho’s arrest in September 2024 in Oslo, the Norwegian authorities are citing the same reasons to justify this fourth extension: the risk that the accused, once released, could destroy evidence or influence witnesses. His detention has thus been extended until March 10.
Indeed, the Norwegian justice system continues to gather evidence against Ayaba Cho, accused of crimes against humanity for his alleged involvement in attacks and abuses committed in the crisis-ridden regions of North-West and South-West of Cameroon.
Naturalized German and residing in Norway, Ayaba Cho is the leader of the Anglophone-inspired separatist movement, the Ambazonia Governing Council, as well as its armed wing, the Ambazonia Defence Force. If convicted of the charges against him, he faces a sentence of up to 21 years in prison.
SBBC