Benin: 24 months in prison requested against a former commander of the French special forces
The special court of the CRIET has requested a 24-month prison sentence, including four years of hard labor, against a former commander of the French special forces who is being prosecuted in a case involving counterfeit Beninese driving licenses. The defendant, who denies the charges and claims to be merely an intermediary, is appearing alongside two other foreign nationals for whom the public prosecutor has requested their acquittal.
The public prosecutor at the Court for the Repression of Economic Crimes and Terrorism (CRIET) requested on Monday, June 15, a sentence of 24 months of imprisonment, including four years of hard labor and a fine of 2 million CFA francs, approximately 3,000 euros, against a retired former commander of the French special forces, charged with false certificates in a case of counterfeit Beninese driving licenses. The defendant, referred to by his initials R.F. in the Beninese press, denies the facts and is presumed innocent.
The former officer is appearing under detention before the correctional chamber of the CRIET alongside two other foreign nationals, a Russian-Belgian economic operator and a thirty-something French national, who are being prosecuted without detention. The prosecutor has requested the acquittal of these two co-defendants. Having lived in Benin for several years for professional reasons after transitioning to entrepreneurship, the main accused claims to have only played the role of an intermediary and identifies another person as the true organizer of the network.
According to the prosecution, he allegedly participated in the establishment of counterfeit Beninese driving licenses for European expatriates in his circle. The investigation revealed that an amount of 150,000 CFA francs, or approximately 229 euros, was allegedly paid for the establishment of the disputed documents, a portion of which was reportedly returned to him as commission. During a search, investigators seized computer equipment and video files presented as related to the production of counterfeit documents.
The Russian-Belgian economic operator disputes having used a counterfeit license. The second French defendant acknowledged using a falsified document but claims he was unaware of its fraudulent nature, specifying that he had previously converted his French license to an Ivorian license during a stay in Côte d’Ivoire.
The defense has argued for complete acquittal, stating that the evidence in the case does not support holding their client criminally responsible. The trial, which had its first hearing on February 16, 2026, has been deliberated until July 20, 2026.
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