Tuesday saw the announcement by a top prosecutor in Niger that, in spite of his lawyers' denials, ousted president Mohamed Bazoum had attempted to elude house arrest.

Bazoum and his wife and son had been living in the presidential palace since July 26, the day he was overthrown by the armed forces.

According to a regime spokesman on state television, the stated escape plan called for arriving at a hideout outside of the capital, Niamey, and then using helicopters "belonging to a foreign power" to fly towards Nigeria.


A statement made by the prosecutor general, Salissou Chaibou, who is stationed at the court of appeal, was also aired nationally on television. "These are real facts and not staged," she said.

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Chaibou also verified the purported "exfiltration plan" that the military government had laid out.

"On the night of October 18," Bazoum, the previous president, "his family, his security and his cooks, carrying various packages, were stopped" by "agents of the presidential guard, as they were heading towards the exit of the palace", stated Chaibou.

"A careful search of the parcels and a search of the former president's residence led to the discovery of large sums of money in (local) and foreign currencies, as well as various precious goods," according to him.