Black Beach was overthrown in a 1979 coup d'état. Black Beach holds a number of foreign prisoners sentenced for participating in a 2004 coup d'état attempt against the President of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo. These included Simon Mann, the alleged ringleader, until his presidential pardon on 2 November 2009 on humanitarian grounds, and more recently Ramón Esono Ebalé (released in March 2018). Black Beach Black Beach (), located on the island of Bioko, in the capital city of Malabo in Equatorial Guinea, is one of Africa's most notorious prisons. It has a reputation for systematically neglecting and brutalising inmates. Medical
James Brabazon James Brabazon James Martin Brabazon (born 18 February 1972), is a British documentary filmmaker, journalist, and author. Brabazon is best known for his work in conflict situations. He first gained attention as the only journalist to film the LURD rebel group fighting to overthrow President Charles Taylor during the Second Liberian Civil War. While in Liberia, Brabazon encountered South African mercenary Nick du Toit and hired him as his bodyguard. Brabazon’s memoir "My Friend the Mercenary" recounts his experiences of the Liberian civil war, his friendship with du Toit, and du Toit’s subsequent role in the failed Equatorial Guinea coup