Benin – Psychopath Gate: 6 months of prison required against Angela Kpeidja
On Monday, June 30, 2025, the prosecutor of the Court for the Repression of Economic Offenses and Terrorism (Criet) requested a prison sentence against the journalist and women’s rights activist Angela Kpeidja. She is being prosecuted in the “Psychopath Gate” case for electronic harassment against Stevy Wallace.
SUMMARY
On Monday, June 30, 2025, the Court for the Repression of Economic Offenses and Terrorism (CRIET) continued the examination of the “Psychopath Gate” file in which the activist and journalist Angela Kpeidja is being prosecuted for electronic harassment.
Neither Angela Kpeidja nor her lawyers appeared at the hearing. According to information from BENIN WEB TV, since the start of the trial, the journalist and women’s rights activist has consistently opted for a policy of non-attendance.
The plaintiff, Stevy Wallace, was present. His lawyers demanded 80 million FCFA in damages and urged the Court to make an exemplary decision, uninfluenced by the notoriety of the journalist, known for her commitment to women’s rights.
The public prosecutor considered the sum demanded by the plaintiff excessive. He proposed to reduce it to 20 million FCFA.
The public prosecutor requested a 6-month suspended prison sentence and a fine of 2 million FCFA against Angela Kpeidja, a penalty deemed proportional to the facts alleged by the prosecutor. He reminded that the defendant’s absence from the hearing could be interpreted as a defiant attitude towards the justice system.
A Psychopath Gate affair
The case dates back to March 2024, when activist Angela Kpeidja posted messages on her Facebook page denouncing an alleged harasser and rapist, without however naming Stevy Wallace.
He felt targeted because of the descriptions and filed a complaint for cyber harassment. The case, after an initial investigation by the Office for the Repression of Cybercrime (OCRC), was transferred to the CRIET.
At the hearing on May 13, 2024, Angela Kpeidja argued that she had never mentioned Stevy Wallace in her posts. She specified that some controversial posts on her platforms were the work of her community manager. Her lawyers then requested the case be closed, considering the complaint was not substantiated.
The future of the case now depends on the final decision of the Court, which will have to balance between freedom of speech and the legal limits of public denunciation.
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