Adam Roberts 
The Wonga Coup 
Simon Mann’s Plot to Seize Oil Billions in Africa

In March 2004 a group led by Nick Du Toit and former SAS member Simon Mann tried to overthrow the tyrannical Obiang Nguema, president of Equatorial Guinea. They were working for investors, allegedly including Mark Thatcher and ‘J.H. Archer’, who wanted to seize control of Africa’s third largest oil producer. Roberts tells how the coup was set up and abandoned at the last minute, and how the plotters were seized and subsequently tortured. The new material includes an account of Mann’s illegal abduction from prison in 2008; his dramatic trial, in which he accuses named individuals, including Thatcher, of being deeply involved in the plot; Thatcher’s fears of ‘extraordinary rendition’ to Equatorial Guinea; and Eli Calil’s revelatory admission that he supported forced regime change in Equatorial Guinea.

About the author

Adam Roberts spent five years as South Asia bureau chief for the Economist, based in Delhi. Previously he was Africa Correspondent for the same publication. He is now European Business Correspondent, based in Paris. He is the author of The Wonga Coup.