Martinez Zogo Case: Cybersecurity Expert Who Traced Deleted Video Testifies on Digital Forensics

A leading cybersecurity expert, Professor Bell Bitjoka, played a key role in the ongoing investigation into the killing of journalist Martinez Zogo after analysing mobile phones belonging to suspects and reportedly recovering deleted digital evidence.

According to details from the case, the expert was able to trace a video allegedly showing acts of torture linked to one of the accused persons, despite the footage having been deleted from the device.

With nearly two decades of experience in digital forensics and cybersecurity, Prof. Bitjoka serves as an associate lecturer in cybercrime at the National Advanced Police School in Yaoundé and as a sworn judicial expert attached to the Courts of Appeal of the Centre and Littoral regions.

He is also a lecturer at the National School of Administration and Magistracy (ENAM) and a full-time academic at the National Polytechnic of Yaoundé, while actively working as a consultant in information systems security across Africa and Europe.

Specialised in network security, cryptography and digital forensics, he is also said to lead a consultancy firm focused on auditing and securing information systems, with activities covering cybersecurity governance, data protection and cybercrime prevention.

Over the course of his career, he has contributed to the training of law enforcement officers, magistrates and technical experts, while working closely with judicial institutions to strengthen digital investigation capabilities.

Prof. Bitjoka was trained at ITMO University in Saint Petersburg, Russia, a globally recognised institution known for its strengths in information technology, artificial intelligence, robotics, cybersecurity and advanced engineering research.

His testimony forms part of the technical evidence being examined in the high-profile Martinez Zogo case, which continues before the Yaoundé Military Tribunal.