By In a shocking revelation, a friend of a prominent Congolese opposition leader’s son has disclosed that he declined a substantial six-figure offer to travel from the United States to the Democratic Republic of Congo for what was initially presented as a security job. However, it later emerged that the job was part of a failed coup attempt that led to the deaths and arrests of several individuals, including three Americans.
The coup attempt, which took place on Sunday morning, resulted in the detention of 21-year-old Marcel Malanga, the son of the eccentric coup leader Christian Malanga, who was killed in a shootout while resisting arrest. Among those arrested were two of Marcel’s high school classmates from West Jordan, Utah, including his former football teammate, 21-year-old Tyler Thompson. According to Congolese army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Sylvain Ekenge, the attack on the presidential palace in Kinshasa claimed six lives and led to dozens of arrests, including the three Americans.
Daniel Gonzalez, another former teammate of Marcel and Tyler, revealed to The Associated Press that he was offered between $50,000 and $100,000 to spend four months in Congo as a security guard for Marcel’s politician father. Despite considering the offer, Gonzalez, a 22-year-old FedEx worker, ultimately declined due to the lack of concrete details and his desire to spend the summer with his girlfriend. “I feel really sad for Tyler and Marcel but, at the end of the day, I can just be grateful that I didn’t go because I would be stuck in the same scary situation,” Gonzalez stated.
The lucrative offer made to Gonzalez sheds light on how Marcel might have enticed Thompson to join him in Congo, which Thompson’s stepmother, Miranda, believed was supposed to be a vacation. It has been reported that Marcel approached several of his former football teammates with various pitches, ranging from a family vacation to a service trip to build wells in drought-stricken communities.
Although it remains unclear whether Thompson was offered money, multiple teammates told the AP that he had alluded to financial incentives, describing the trip as a “big financial opportunity.” Thompson’s family maintains that he was a political pawn, dragged into an international conflict under false pretenses. Since the coup attempt, they have had no direct communication with him and are deeply concerned for his safety.
Marcel’s mother, Brittney Sawyer, insists that her son is innocent and was merely following his father. Christian Malanga, the slain leader of the Congolese opposition political party, described himself as the president of a shadow government in exile, known as the “New Zaire.” After relocating to Salt Lake City with his family in the 1990s, he pursued various business opportunities before returning to Congo to fight for political reforms. During his campaign for the Congolese Parliament, Malanga claimed he was jailed and tortured, and he published a manifesto detailing plans to reform Congo’s security services and organized fellow emigrants against what he called the “current Congolese dictatorship government regime.”
Gonzalez, who communicated with Marcel about the financial offer over Snapchat in the months leading up to the coup attempt, was shocked to learn how the trip unfolded. Marcel had told him that his father allowed him to hire a friend for company during the summer abroad and seemed excited to offer such a substantial amount of money to a close friend in need. The Malangas promised on-the-job training, travel expenses, and the chance to explore a new part of the world while earning an income, with Marcel insisting that the trip was safe without sharing details about his father’s background.
Despite the U.S. State Department’s warnings against traveling to Congo, neither Gonzalez nor his mother thought the trip would be unsafe. Gonzalez ultimately declined the offer when his girlfriend asked him to stay. Later, he saw private Snapchat videos from Marcel showing Thompson looking frightened as armed Congolese soldiers surrounded their vehicle, with Marcel assuring Gonzalez they were safe in their final exchange.
Other former teammates, including Luke Barbee and Jaden Lalor, heard different pitches about the trip and wondered why Marcel seemed so desperate to bring someone along. They could not believe their friends were involved in a violent attack, with Lalor stating, “I consider Marcel a brother and Tyler a friend, and I truly believe Marcel’s father must have pressured them for his own wants. I just want them back safely.”
The revelation of the lucrative offer and the subsequent failed coup attempt highlights the desperate and dangerous situation that unfolded in Congo, leaving families and friends of those involved deeply concerned for their safety and well-being.
