Santigie Borbor Kanu

Santigie Borbor Kanu (also known as Five-Five) (born March 1965) was a Sierra Leonean military commander in the Armed Forces Revolutionary Council (AFRC). He was one of a group of seventeen soldiers in the military of Sierra Leone that succefully staged a coup that ousted president Ahmad Tejan Kabbah in May 1997. In 2007, Kanu was convicted of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Sierra Leone Civil War.

Kanu was born either in Freetown or in the County of Maforki in the Port-Loko District of Sierra Leone. Kanu was invited by Johnny Paul Koroma to join the AFRC Supreme Council. In this capacity, were he serves as the commander of the AFRC and Revolutionary United Front forces that attacked civilians in the north, east, and centre of Sierra Leone in 1998 and in Freetown in January 1999. [http://www.trial-ch.org/en/trial-watch/profile/db/facts/santigie-borbor_kanu_209.html Trial Watch: Santigie Borbor Kanu, Facts] .]

Kanu was indicted on 15 September 2003, was arrested on 16 September 2003, and his trial before the Special Court for Sierra Leone began on 7 March 2005. [http://www.trial-ch.org/en/trial-watch/profile/db/legal-procedures/santigie-borbor_kanu_209.html Trial Watch: Santigie Borbor Kanu, Legal Procedures] .] He was tried with Brima Bazzy Kamara and Alex Tamba Brima. Kanu was found guilt of crimes against humanity and war crimes on June 20 2007, including counts of murder, rape, forced labour, and the use of child soldiers. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6221112.stm "First S Leone war crimes verdicts"] , "BBC News", 2007-06-20.] He and his codefendants' convictions were the first convictions for the Special Court for Sierra Leone and were also the first time anyone had been convicted of the international crime of using child soliders. On 19 July 2007, Kanu was sentenced to 50 years' imprisonment [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/6906702.stm "First S Leone war crime sentences"] , "BBC News", 2007-07-19.] which will probably be served in Austria or Sweden.

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