French prosecutors launch investigation after two Congolese Paralympic athletes disappear

PARIS (AP) — French judicial authorities are investigating the disappearance of two Paralympic athletes from Congo who recently took part in the Paris GamesThe public prosecutor’s office in the Paris suburb of Bobigny confirmed on Thursday.

The public prosecutor’s office began its investigation on September 7, after members of the athletes’ delegation informed the authorities two days earlier about the disappearance of the two athletes.

The newspaper Le Parisien reported that shot putter Mireille Nganga and Emmanuel Grace Mouambako, a visually impaired sprinter who was accompanied by a guide, disappeared on September 5 along with a third person.

The athletes’ suitcases had also disappeared, but their passports remained with the Congolese delegation, according to an official familiar with the investigation who wished to remain anonymous because he was not allowed to speak publicly about the case.

The Paralympic Committee of the Democratic Republic of Congo did not respond to requests for information from The Associated Press.

Nganga – who scored no points in the javelin and shot put – and Mouambako were Congo’s flag bearers at the Opening ceremony the Paralympics, organizers said.

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