On Thursday, March 13, 2025, the Court for the Repression of Economic Offenses and Terrorism (CRIET) granted provisional release on bail to Dieudonné Aloukoutou, former Executive Secretary of the Kpomassè town hall.
He is being prosecuted for abuse of office in a suspected fraud case related to the awarding of a public contract for the construction of a municipal cemetery.
A reprieve pending trial
Detained for several months, Dieudonné Aloukoutou will now be able to regain his freedom while awaiting the continuation of his trial. His lawyer, Me Omer Tchiakpè, had filed a request for provisional release.
After review, CRIET issued a favorable decision, though it conditioned the release on a bail payment of 300,000 CFA francs. The case has been postponed to April 10, 2025, when proceedings will resume before the special court.
Key witnesses absent from the hearing
The March 13 hearing also revealed another issue: the repeated absence of two experts expected to shed light on the case. These include a member of the investigation commission and an inspector from the Ministry of Decentralization, whose testimonies are deemed essential to clarify the charges against the former Executive Secretary.
In response, the court ordered that they be summoned again to ensure their presence at the next hearing.
The case concerns a public contract for the construction of the Kpomassè cemetery, a project in which financial and administrative irregularities were reported.
During the January 16, 2025 hearing, Mayor Kénam Mensah presented incriminating evidence against his former colleague. Citing a report from the investigative commission, he revealed that the company in charge of the project had been fully paid, even though not all of the deliverables outlined in the specifications had been completed.
Other reported irregularities include:
- The use of forged stamps,
- The assignment of false transmission numbers on delivery notes,
- The forgery of signatures on official documents.
In response to the charges, Dieudonné Aloukoutou and his co-defendant pleaded not guilty, denying any involvement in the alleged misconduct.
With the trial set to resume on April 10, 2025, the case remains under close watch as the court moves toward a final ruling on the defendants’ responsibilities.