The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention concluded that the detention of Portuguese-Angolan businessman Carlos Sao Vicente was arbitrary and called for his immediate release and compensation, according to a final conclusion released this Monday.
San Vicente was sentenced on March 24, 2022, to nine years in prison for crimes related to embezzlement, tax fraud and money laundering, and ordered to pay compensation of $500 million (€464 million).
The businessman’s Swiss lawyers, François Ziemerey and Jessica Finnel, approached the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in March 2021, six months after the businessman was detained on suspicion of embezzlement and money laundering.
In a final report published this Monday, confirming the findings of a preliminary version dated late last year, a group of United Nations experts concluded that the detention violated the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil Rights and Policy, and questioned the Angolan Authorities for their “immediate release.”
The same document also calls for compensation and an impartial investigation into the conditions under which the trial was conducted.
“The 16-page report describes the conditions of unjustifiably long detention, violation of the right to an independent and impartial trial, violation of the presumption of innocence, denial of the right to a defense and numerous other violations of international treaties and human rights laws,” the statement noted. lawyers who believe that this “bold decision represents a decisive turning point.”
According to the defense of San Vicente, the consequences of the conclusion are significant, both in terms of processes initiated, ongoing or completed in Angola and in other countries: “They are illegal and subject to declaration of nullity.”
According to the opinion, the working group expressed concern about San Vicente’s physical and mental condition, as well as the fact that he was imprisoned during the Covid-19 pandemic without access to adequate medical care.
On the other hand, the complexity of the case and the lack of time and facilities provided to the defense to become familiar with the case against San Vicente are also highlighted.
The former owner of insurance company AAA was found guilty of crimes related to embezzlement, money laundering and tax fraud for allegedly defrauding Sonangol of $900 million (€822 million at current exchange rates).
Then the judicial authorities ordered the seizure of the assets of the Portuguese-Angolan businessman and also demanded that his bank accounts be frozen.