Six Armenian pilots who were accused in African coup plot return home

AP Worldstream
Jun 11, 2005

Six Armenian pilots who spent nearly 15 months in an Equatorial
Guinean prison for allegedly plotting to overthrow the government
returned home Saturday.

The six, who were arrested in March 2004, were granted a presidential
pardon and released on Wednesday.

The government said the six were hired to fly gunmen and material in
for the plot, but chief pilot, Ashot Karapetyan, told a news
conference in Yerevan that there was never any evidence they were
involved.

A South African arms dealer who was the alleged leader of the
mercenaries remains in detention.

Amnesty International said that the trial had been rife with human
rights violations.