Justin Koua and Damana Adia Pickass, two senior members of the PPA-CI, the party of Laurent Gbagbo, were each sentenced to 10 years in prison, among other penalties, on Wednesday, February 12, 2025. They were prosecuted in two separate cases before the Abidjan First Instance Court in Côte d'Ivoire.

Justin Koua, currently the deputy secretary-general of the PPA-CI, was found guilty of "disturbing public order" and "inciting insurrection" in connection with the pre-election violence of 2020.

Damana Adia Pickass, second vice-president of the strategic and political council of the same party, was also sentenced to ten years of civil rights deprivation and a five-year ban from appearing in the country (except in his birthplace), for "undermining national defense," "criminal association," and "conspiracy against the authority of the state" in connection with the attack on the Abobo Kouté military camp in 2021.

In both cases, the court followed most of the prosecution's requests, although last week the prosecutor had demanded a much harsher sentence for Damana Pickass – 20 years in prison – to "send a message to those who have decided to carry out these actions." Oumar Braman Koné, the prosecutor, had specifically referred to him as the "financier" of the attack on the military camp.

Their lawyers announced their intention to appeal what they called an "unjust" and "unfair" decision. The two convicted men left the court free, surrounded by several political leaders from the PPA-CI, who also did not hide their bitterness. "The sentences [that were handed down] are political convictions. We will therefore continue the fight with our lawyers until we succeed," said Sébastien Dano Djédjé, the executive president of Laurent Gbagbo’s party.