Sankara, a charismatic Marxist revolutionary often called “Che Guevara of Africa,” was assassinated during a coup led by his former friend Compaore.
A military court on Tuesday accused Compaore of complicity in the assassination, undermining state security and receiving corpses, a court document saw by Reuters.
Compaore’s former right-hand man, General Gilbert Diendere, has also been charged with several crimes related to Sankara’s murder, including complicity in the assassination.
Diendere, who has been in prison since a failed coup in 2015, is in court to hear the charges. He will introduce a plea later.
Burkina Faso issued an arrest warrant for Compaore in 2015, but Ivory Coast refused to hand him over.
Sankara, who took power in a 1983 coup at the age of 33, was known for his military fatigue, red beret and rejection of a generous lifestyle.
In four years as president, she became the first African leader to denounce the threat of AIDS, take a stand against the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, and promote women’s rights by opposing female genital mutilation and polygamy.