Togo said Monday it has charged a French citizen with illegal arms trafficking after the military seized four combat aircraft investigators suspected were bound for war-battered Ivory Coast against a U.N. arms embargo, AP reported. The armed forces impounded two MiG jet fighters and a pair of attack helicopters at Togo's international airport early this year, after raiding the local offices of Robert Montoya, military Spokesman Maj. Moise Kemnece Oyome said. He said Montoya was the aircrafts' current title holder and is under arms-trafficking charges after «he failed to give satisfactory explanation about the origin and destination of the combat aircrafts.» Oyome said officials suspect Montoya intended to send the aircraft to Ivory Coast, under a U.N. arms embargo in place since a 2002-2003 civil war between government and rebel forces. Despite peace deals, the country remains divided and tense. Montoya, whose whereabouts were unknown, could not be reached for comment. «We must allow justice to take its full course without prejudging the issue,» Oyome said. Montoya operates a private security firm in Togo and is also the West African representative for BSVT, a Belarusian arms and munitions firm.
