Forces working for Blackwater founder Erik Prince were ambushed in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo last month, leaving about 20 people dead or wounded — including former UFC fighter and U.S. Green Beret Tim Kennedy.
On September 17, a team from Vectus Global, Prince's private security company, was hit in South Kivu province. The ambush killed at least seven Congolese nationals and a former New Zealand Special Air Service member named Justin Conaglen. Kennedy and at least one other foreign contractor were wounded. It is the first time the company has taken casualties in Congo, according to a source with direct knowledge of the operation.
Kennedy, who served as a Green Beret before competing in the UFC, took three gunshot wounds to the leg. He was evacuated through Burundi and South Africa and is currently being treated at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center outside Washington, D.C.
Sources told Reuters the attack was sophisticated enough that Rwandan forces supporting the M23 rebels may have been involved. One account says the attackers possibly tracked a Vectus surveillance drone back to the team's location. Congolese and Rwandan officials, along with M23, have not confirmed the details.
This was not a U.S. military operation. Vectus has been under contract with the Congolese government since late 2024 — a five-year agreement initially valued at $300-400 million, according to the New York Times. What started as work helping with mining revenue and tax collection later expanded into security support, drone operations, and assisting Congolese forces against M23 in areas like Uvira. The State Department has said it has no contracts with Prince in Congo.
Kennedy compiled an 18-6 professional MMA record, including a 3-2 stint in the UFC. He served nearly 20 years in the U.S. Army, earning his Green Beret in 2005.
The reporting comes from Reuters, which cited sources close to the Congolese government and the company, and the New York Times. Vectus declined to comment, and no government has issued an official casualty figure.