Anglophone crisis: US federal court sentences three Americans of Cameroonian origin

A federal court in Kansas City, Missouri, has sentenced three naturalized American citizens of Cameroonian origin to lengthy prison terms for their involvement in supporting separatist fighters in Cameroon's Anglophone regions. The sentences range from five to 15 years, with an additional three years of supervised release after their prison terms are served.

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Found guilty of providing financial and logistical support for the manufacture and use of improvised explosive devices in Cameroon, they face heavy sentences ranging from five to 15 years in prison.

Francis Chenyi, 52, and Lah Nestor Langmi, 49, received the maximum sentence of 15 years each. Claude Ngenevu Chi, 43, was sentenced to 63 months, or just over five years. The court found them guilty of providing financial and logistical support for the manufacture and use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in Cameroon's Northwest and Southwest regions.

Prosecutors accused the men of belonging to a network that financed and supplied logistics to separatist combatants. Their alleged roles included coordinating the production of IEDs and training individuals in their use. Reports indicate this coordination extended to attacks using these explosives in various cities and near the stadium intended to host the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in the Southwest region.

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Francis Chenyi aged 52, Lah Nestor Langmi, 49 fall under a sentence of 15 years in prison each. While Claude Ngenevu Chi, 43, must serve 63 months in prison corresponding to a little more than 5 years.

Furthermore, the three men are accused of coordinating the transfer of funds from the United States to Cameroon, which were allegedly used to carry out these attacks. Langmi is individually accused of participating in the coordination of kidnappings, including those of traditional leader Fonmbam Aforteka and Cardinal Christian Tumi. Chenyi is alleged to have provided financial contributions to these activities.

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It is alleged that these three Cameroonian nationals belonged to a network for financing and providing logistics for the benefit of separatist fighters operating in the Northwest and Southwest regions.

These convictions are part of a broader effort by the United States to address the Anglophone crisis by prosecuting and convicting individuals suspected of financing or committing terrorist acts within Cameroon. This follows previous convictions of other Cameroonian nationals for similar offenses, with Che Ernest Banhary and Edith Ngang receiving four-year sentences. In 2024, approximately thirty separatist leaders were brought before American courts following complaints filed by a law firm at the request of the Cameroonian state.

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The United States has committed to prosecuting, judging, and convicting these men suspected of having participated in financing or committing terrorist acts on Cameroonian territory.