Gaby Mamba, 16, was killed by a stray bullet on 19 January 2015 while he was in his house in Matete commune, Kinshasa. As gunfire intensified in his neighborhood, the young boy scout went upstairs to look out over the streets what was happening from a window.
More gunshots were fired.
Gaby tried to go down for cover. A bullet hit his neck. He lost a lot of blood and died in the family house.
The young boy’s death angered many in his neighborhood. The youth took his body to a nearby police station in protest. The police quickly dispersed the crowd and took Gaby’s body with them in a jeep. Her aunt told Amnesty that they tried to follow the jeep but failed to catch up with it.
His body was found at the morgue at Saint Joseph Hospital, two days later. The police had left his body on the street in front of the hospital the day he was killed.
According to the family, requests to embalm Gaby’s body were rejected by the staff at the morgue, citing instructions from the National Intelligence Agency.
Gaby was laid to rest 45 days later.
A complaint was lodged in at the Matete High Court. Since then, there has not been any official communication from the authorities on Gaby’s case to his family. “We never saw an investigator. No authority came to see us, not even the very local one” said Gaby’s relatives who spoke to Amnesty.
The magistrate in charge of the case told Amnesty in August 2019 that they failed to investigate the case because of the lack of resources. And the file itself appeared to have been lost.
“The years have passed, but for us, the pain remains strong. Whenever I see young people of his age, I cannot help but think of the man he would have become. As long as those who killed him remain unpunished, it will be impossible for us to end the mourning.” Gaby’s aunt said.