Anibal Dos Santos - First Trial and Extradition

First Trial and Extradition

The trial against the five present suspects and the missing dos Santos began November 18, 2002. Court sessions were broadcast on national TV. Three of the suspects identified Nyimpine Chissano, son of the president, as the man behind the murder. Nyimpine Chissano appeared in court and refuted all allegations. Soon after the trial commenced, the mother of dos Santos announced that her son was safely living in London. She said dos Santos "was helped to flee to London in order to prevent him from testifying",; she also claimed that he was innocent and ready to return to Mozambique and testify if given security guarantees.

Dos Santos was arrested in Pretoria, South Africa, at the end of January 2003, one day before the scheduled pronouncement of court sentence in Maputo. South African authorities immediately announced that extradition would proceed "as early as weekend". The next day the court declared dos Santos guilty as the mastermind of the crime, and sentenced him to 28 years and six months. Other suspects received up to 23 years. No charges where ever brought against Chissano family members.

In the end of 2003 three of the convicts, but not dos Santos, were reported to be involved in court proceedings against the fraud at the Central Bank — the last case of Carlos Cardoso.