RCA returns ex-soldier Rémy Quignolot to France after a year and a half imprisoned for alleged espionage

May 21. (EUROPE PRESS) –

Former French soldier Juan Rémy Quignolot has returned to his country this Sunday for health reasons after spending a year and a half imprisoned in the Central African Republic, accused of espionage, according to NGOs and family sources have confirmed to the newspaper ‘Le Parisien’.

Quignolot was arrested for the first time in May 2021 in the capital of the African country, Bangui, where he had resided since 2013, initially for possession of an undeclared firearm.

Others were added to this crime but finally the ex-military man, 57 years old and dedicated to private security, only ended up formally accused of espionage.

Quignolot ended up starting a hunger strike in September 2022 to force his departure from the country. A diplomatic operation by the French Foreign Ministry led to his release from prison to end up under house arrest, confined to the limits of the French Embassy in the Central African capital.

Finally, health problems related to his liver have led to his return to France through Gabon. The ex-soldier arrived this Friday at the Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, according to the sources of ‘Le Parisien’.

The president of the NGO for Human Rights Atangana, Michel-Thierry Atangana, has celebrated the departure of the soldier as a collaboration between both countries, while the older sister of the former soldier, Caroline Quignolot, has also applauded the arrival. “He is very stressed and needs to rest, but I am immensely relieved that he has his freedom back,” she said.