Financiers allegedly hatched coup plot for oil-rich nation

Hatched by Old Etonians and other members of the British political and financial elite, an alleged scheme to seize control of this oil-rich nation was no ordinary African coup plot, according to witnesses and prosecutors. The plan as outlined in a trial that began Monday: send in a motley crew of European, Asian and African mercenaries to oust the 25-year ruler of what is widely considered one of the world's most corrupt regimes. The prize: control of Africa's third-largest oil producer. But if there was any plot, it went disastrously wrong. Mark Thatcher, the 51-year-old son of former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, found himself detained in his pajamas Wednesday at his South African home and later charged with helping to finance the plot, which African authorities said they foiled in March. [more ]

• The British connection: coup plot thickens  [more ]