Claude Pivi, a former colonel and security minister under Guinea’s then-dictator Moussa Dadis Camara, has died in custody, authorities confirmed on Tuesday. Pivi, also known as “Coplan,” passed away in a Conakry hospital due to complications related to diabetes, according to the public prosecutor’s office.
Pivi was convicted in absentia in 2024 for his role in the 2009 stadium massacre in Conakry, a violent crackdown on tens of thousands of protestors opposing the Camara-led junta. Security forces responded to the demonstrations with extreme brutality, resulting in at least 156 deaths by gunfire, knives, machetes, or bayonets, as documented by a UN-mandated international commission of inquiry. Hundreds were injured, and at least 109 women were raped, marking the event as one of Guinea’s darkest chapters.
In 2023, Pivi escaped from prison but was later extradited from neighboring Liberia in 2024 and returned to custody to serve a life sentence for crimes against humanity. Camara, who also escaped during the same prison break, was recaptured the same day, sentenced to 20 years for his involvement, and later pardoned by President Mamadi Doumbouya in March 2025.
Pivi’s death closes a grim chapter in Guinea’s modern history, highlighting the ongoing struggles for accountability and justice following the violent suppression of dissent during the country’s political upheavals.
