Central African Republic (CAR) militia leader Patrice-Edouard Ngaïssona is set to appear before the International Criminal Court on Friday after he was transferred to the court from France on Wednesday.

Ngaïssona rose to prominence as a football official in the CAR and eventually became a board member of the Confederation of African Football. Ngaïssona has been charged with coordinating the anti-Balaka, a christian militia, to commit war crimes against the Muslim population of the Central African Republic during a 2013 coup. Ngaïssona attempted to run for president in the aftermath of the coup but was barred. Ngaïssona then stated in defiance of the new government: “The anti-Balaka will keep their weapons until the disarmament, demobilisation, reintegration and repatriation programme is effective.”

Ngaïssona was apprehended by authorities of the French Republic pursuant to an ICC arrest warrant on December 12. The arrest warrant leveled charges of both war crimes and crimes against humanity against the Muslim populations of the Central African Republic. Ngaïssona was transferred to the Hague to await his ICC trial after completion of extradition proceedings by a French National Court on Wednesday. Ngaïssona is set to appear before Pre-trial Chamber II of the ICC on Friday.