A court in Equatorial Guinea has sentenced senior government official Baltasar Engonga to eight years in prison for embezzlement, following his rise to infamy due to leaked sex tapes involving the spouses of other officials.
The Bioko Provincial Tribunal found Engonga guilty of misappropriating state funds intended for professional travel expenses for his personal use, as reported by Hilario Mitogo, the press director at the Supreme Court, who communicated with reporters via WhatsApp.
Engonga, commonly referred to as “Bello” and a former head of the national financial investigation agency, faced trial alongside five other senior officials accused of misusing hundreds of thousands of dollars in the oil-rich Central African nation.
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The scandal first emerged in November when explicit videos, some reportedly filmed in his office at the finance ministry, were shared on social media while he was in custody awaiting trial.
The videos led to a surge of online satire, including parody songs, dances, and a mock aphrodisiac called “Balthazariem.”
In addition to his prison sentence, the court also imposed a fine of $220,000 on Engonga.
