High-Ranking Equatorial Guinea Official Jailed for Embezzlement
Baltasar Ebang Engonga, the nephew of Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema and the former head of the National Financial Investigation Agency, has received an eight-year prison sentence for embezzlement. He diverted state funds for his personal use.
Engonga, popularly known as "Bello" for his good looks, made news last year when leaked sex tapes showed him with multiple women, many connected to powerful families. The scandal broke while he was in detention over secret accounts in the Cayman Islands. He was convicted along with five other officials who falsely claimed travel allowances between $9,000 and $220,000.
His arrest and subsequent public humiliation were seen as a move to eliminate any chance of him succeeding his uncle, the world's longest-serving president. Engonga used to investigate crimes such as money laundering, but found himself at the infamous Black Beach prison in the capital, Malabo, after being accused of corruption.
InFocus
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Vice President Teodoro Obiang Mangue has said that officials who engage in sex acts at work will be suspended because that is a "flagrant violation of the code of conduct" and they will face "severe measures".
This follows reports that high-ranking civil servant Baltasar Ebang Engonga was having sex with several women in his office, including the wives of prominent government
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Equatorial Guinea is pursuing a petition it filed with the International Criminal Court (ICJ) to prevent the French government from selling a multi-million dollar property owned by the country's vice president, Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, which was seized in 2021. He was convicted under a legislation that allows France to target wealth illicitly acquired by foreign leaders.
Equatorial Guinea's ambassador to France, Carmelo Nvono-Ncá, has strongly criticized the French
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Baltasar Ebang Engonga.
