Zim 62 released
12/05/2005 13:29 - (SA)
Harare - A group of 62 suspected mercenaries were discharged from a top security prison in Zimbabwe on Thursday to be deported to South Africa, their lawyer said.
The men were getting ready to walk out of Chikurubi prison more than a year after they were arrested over an alleged plot to topple the president in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea.
"They have been discharged and are awaiting for immigration to deport them to South Africa," said lawyer Jonathan Samkange. "They are ready to go and the prison authorities are ready to let them go."
The 62 were among 70 men arrested in March last year when their plane stopped at Harare international airport to pick up weapons that Zimbabwean authorities allege were to be used to depose long-time President Teodoro Obiang Nguema.
The men, who all hold South African passports, were convicted and sentenced to 12 months in prison for violating Zimbabwe's immigration laws.