An investigation was opened last Wednesday in Paris for complicity in crimes against humanity and war crimes following a report by the NGO The Sentry accusing a subsidiary of the French beverage giant Castel for providing financial support to rebels in the Central African Republic to secure its facilities.

The Crimes Against Humanity Unit of the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor's Office (Pnat) has opened a preliminary investigation to examine the possible involvement, as accomplices, of the Soci& The Castel group and their leaders in the commission of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by armed militias in the Central African Republic, entrusted to the Central Office for Combating Crimes Against Humanity and Hate Crimes (OCLCH). This investigation follows accusations made by The Sentry, which allegedly negotiated a security arrangement with, in particular, the Unity for Peace in the Central African Republic (UPC), an armed group accused of abuses in order to “secure” its “factory and sugar cane fields” and” try to protect society's monopoly.”

Accusations that Pierre-Olivier Sur, a Somdiaa lawyer, denounces an “attempt to destabilize one of the last French agri-food jewels in Africa” and considers that ; a “defamatory denunciation lawsuit” would follow. Recall that numerous other investigations targeting French companies have already been opened in Paris for complicity in crimes against humanity. The BNP Paribas bank is targeted for its role during the war in Darfur and in the Rwandan genocide. The cement manufacturer Lafarge was indicted on suspicion of having paid millions of euros via a subsidiary to terrorist groups, including the Islamic State (IS) group, to maintain the activity of a cement factory in Syria in 2013 and 2014.