Angolan justice continues to “work” on the cases of Isabel dos Santos and Manuel Vicente

This Thursday, the Attorney General of the Republic of Angola assured that criminal cases involving Angolan figures do not stand still and that the Angolan justice system keeps its doors open to dialogue.

Helder Pitta Gros spoke to the press on the sidelines of an asset forfeiture seminar for Angolan high court judges in Luanda.

Asked about the status of the trials involving the daughter of former Angolan President Isabel dos Santos and former Vice President Manuel Vicente, who have been targeted by the Angolan justice system for alleged corruption, Pitta Gros did not comment on specific details. cases that “are subject to judicial secrecy,” but assured that the authorities are “working.”

“There are processes that are more complex than others, there are processes that require more international cooperation than others, others require more institutional cooperation, each process has its “time”,” he said, adding that “human and material resources neither do They come for everything.”

He also assured that the processes are not closed, without specifying whether the parties involved are cooperating, since “each case is individual.”

“When there is an arrest, in principle there is already an imposition, it does not matter whether there is cooperation or not. There are those who, as they say in the jargon, get ahead, and there are those who do not,” said Pitta Gros, justifying the fact that the mechanisms of international cooperation also work slowly.

“It won’t take a day or two, everything has its own rules and we have to comply with the laws of each of these states. We have kept the door open to continue the dialogue, and I believe that sooner or later we will do so.” able to provide further information on this,” said the same person in charge.

Isabel dos Santos, who was issued a red notice by Interpol at Angola’s request, has been living outside her country for several years, as has Manuel Vicente, who are often seen in Dubai.

Regarding the assets recovered by the state, Helder Pitta Gros said that those that were seized or confiscated are under the care of a faithful custodian, and announced that a third auction of the vehicles will be held soon.

According to him, the sale of real estate at public auction is also being prepared.

To date, the list of assets recovered by the Angolan state includes 223 assets, as well as 521 seized and 167 seized assets, including, among others, money, cars, houses, buildings and company shares.

The National Asset Recovery Service details the type of asset, its value and where it was recovered, but does not mention who its owners were, and Pitta Gros acknowledges that this may change.

“We are taking our first steps, dealing with issues that we have never dealt with, and it is natural that there are some mistakes on our part. It was a good step for us in terms of transparency – to make public what we have, what has already been done. have been restored, everyone can go to the site and consult, and we will see if we improve our information,” he said.

The workshop, which will take place this Thursday and Friday, is part of the PRO.REACT project, a project to support the strengthening of the national asset forfeiture system in Angola, funded by the European Union (EU), and aims to develop an effective system to combat illicit financial flows and promote economic growth and poverty reduction in Angola.

Asset forfeiture is an innovative and effective tool in the fight against corruption and organized crime. However, asset recovery practices are complex and require cooperation and coordination between relevant national and international agencies.