Editing Mercenary (section)

=====Equatorial Guinea=====
{{Main|2004 Equatorial Guinea coup attempt}}

In August 2004 there was a plot, which later became known as the "Wonga Coup",<ref>Adam Roberts ''[http://www.wongacoup.com/ The Wonga Coup] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070717194733/http://www.wongacoup.com/ |date=17 July 2007 }}'', Profile Books Ltd, {{ISBN|1861979347}}.</ref> to overthrow the government of [[Equatorial Guinea]] in [[Malabo]]. eight South African [[apartheid]]-era soldiers, organised by Neves Matias (former Recce major and De Jesus Antonio former Captain in 2sai BN) with (the leader of whom is [[Nick du Toit]]) and five local men were held in Black Beach prison on the island. They were accused of being an advanced guard for a coup to place [[Severo Moto]] in power.<ref>''[http://news.independent.co.uk/world/africa/article33194.ece How oil brought the dogs of war back to Malabo] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071015064536/http://news.independent.co.uk/world/africa/article33194.ece |date=15 October 2007 }}'' [[The Independent]] 2 September 2004</ref><ref>Allan Laing "'Scratcher' and the battle for Guinea" ''[[Glasgow Herald]]'' 26 August 2004</ref> Six Armenian aircrew, also convicted of involvement in the plot, were released in 2004 after receiving a presidential pardon. CNN reported on 25 August, that:<ref>[[CNN]] ''[http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/africa/08/25/equatorial.mercenaries.reut/ MALABO, Equatorial Guinea (Reuters) Nick du Toit said he was introduced to Thatcher in South Africa last year by Simon Mann]'', 25 August 2004: {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040914074551/http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/africa/08/25/equatorial.mercenaries.reut/ |date=14 September 2004 }}</ref>
{{blockquote|Defendant [[Nick du Toit]] said he was introduced to Thatcher in South Africa last year by Simon Mann, the leader of 70 men arrested in Zimbabwe in March suspected of being a group of mercenaries heading to Equatorial Guinea.}}

It was planned, allegedly, by Simon Mann, a former [[Special Air Service|SAS]] officer. On 27 August 2004 he was found guilty in Zimbabwe of purchasing arms, allegedly for use in the plot (he admitted trying to procure dangerous weapons, but said that they were to guard a diamond mine in DR Congo). It is alleged that there is a paper trail from him which implicates Sir Mark Thatcher, [[Jeffrey Archer|Lord Archer]] and [[Ely Calil]] (a Lebanese-British oil trader).<ref>[[BBC]] ''[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3605346.stm Mann guilty of purchasing weapons] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040831023303/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3605346.stm |date=31 August 2004 }}'' 27 August 2004</ref>

The [[BBC]] reported in an article entitled "Q&A: Equatorial Guinea coup plot":<ref>[[BBC]] ''[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3597450.stm Q&A: Equatorial Guinea coup plot] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071231024106/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3597450.stm |date=31 December 2007 }}'' 13 January 2005</ref>

{{Blockquote|The BBC's Newsnight television programme saw the financial records of Simon Mann's companies showing large payments to Nick du Toit and also some $2m coming in – though the source of this funding they say is largely untraceable.}}

The BBC reported on 10 September 2004 that in Zimbabwe:<ref>[[BBC]] ''[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3643250.stm Zimbabwe jails UK 'coup plotter'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050922193712/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/3643250.stm |date=22 September 2005 }}'' 10 September 2004</ref>
{{blockquote|[Simon Mann], the British leader of a group of 67 alleged mercenaries accused of plotting a coup in Equatorial Guinea has been sentenced to seven years in jail... The other passengers got 12 months in jail for breaking immigration laws while the two pilots got 16 months...The court also ordered the seizure of Mann's $3m Boeing 727 and $180,000 found on board.}}