Congo star Koffi Olomide detained after 'kicking assault

26 July 2016
Musician Koffi Olomide has been
taken into custody in the Democratic
Republic of Congo, days after he was
deported from Kenya for allegedly
kicking one of his dancers at an
airport in Nairobi.
A judge is considering whether to
charge the star over the incident,
which was filmed and went viral.
He will spend the night in detention
and investigations will continue on
Wednesday, a BBC reporter says.
Olomide has denied assault, though
he has since apologised for his
behaviour.
The Kenyan authorities deported the
60-year-old rumba singer and three
of his dancers on Saturday to DR
Congo's capital, Kinshasa, following
a public outcry over the incident.
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officers arrived at the
singer's home early on Tuesday
morning and took him into custody.
He was handcuffed, put into a police
car and then taken to a court where a
judge is considering whether he
should be put on trial.
His lawyer, Landry Tanganyi, told the
BBC that Olomide, one of Africa's
most popular musicians, should not
be detained overnight as he was not
a flight risk.
However, Olomide left the courthouse
under police escort and will spend
the night at the police station, our
reporter says.
The Congolese musician has been in
similar trouble in the past:
In 2012 he was convicted in DR
Congo of assaulting his producer
and received a three-month
suspended prison sentence
In 2008 he was accused of
kicking a cameraman from DR
Congo's private RTGA television
station and breaking his camera
at a concert in Kinshasa but a
reconciliation was later brokered