Gabon Court Sentences Former First Lady, President's Son to 20 Years in Prison
- The wife and son of the ex-President of Gabon have been sentenced to 20 years in prison after being convicted in their absence of corruption and embezzlement charges
- Former First Lady Sylvia Bongo and her son Noureddin were convicted after a trial in Libreville, after being accused of plundering the state finances
- Ahead of the trial, Bongo denounced it as an “illegal show trial”, and he called the convictions a “rubber-stamping exercise”
Legit.ng journalist, Ridwan Adeola Yusuf, has over 9 years of experience covering global affairs.
Libreville, Gabon - Gabon's former first lady and her son were sentenced in absentia by a special criminal court to 20 years in prison following a two-day trial in Libreville.
As reported on Wednesday, November 12, by ABC News, Sylvia Bongo, 62, and Noureddin Bongo, 33, Valentin were convicted of concealment and embezzlement of public funds, money laundering, criminal association and forgery.
Source: Twitter
Ex-Gabon first lady jailed over corruption
BBC also noted the development.
They were ordered to pay millions of dollars in damages for “crimes against the Gabonese state.”
Valentin said the verdict had long been “predetermined” under the office of President Brice Oligui Nguema, and called the trial a “simple formality.”
The Bongos, who live in London and hold French citizenship, refused to participate in the trial. During the trial, the prosecutor released images of two private jets allegedly procured with laundered money and listed land holdings, including a mansion in London and Morocco.
Meanwhile, ex-president Ali Bongo is not facing prosecution.
Bongo ruled for 14 years and was overthrown moments after being proclaimed the winner in a presidential election the army and opposition declared fraudulent.
He had succeeded his father, Omar Bongo Ondimba, who ruled with an iron fist for nearly 42 years until his death in 2009.
Following the coup, Gen. Nguema, former commander of the Republican Guard, was sworn in as the transitional president, ending 56 years of the so-called Bongo dynasty.
Source: Twitter
Nguema won a presidential election held in April 2025, the first since the bloodless military coup.
The new strongman lost no time in warning that corruption would no longer be tolerated.
He has set up a civilian government and appointed members of a new national assembly and senate for a transitional period ahead of promised elections on an unknown date.
Read more world news:
- Donald Trump issues pardons to allies involved in efforts to overturn 2020 election, full list emerges
- China orders gay dating apps pulled from mobile stores, apple reacts
- BBC director-general resigns following backlash over editing of Donald Trump’s speech
Gabon: Military leader frees Bongo
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Ali Bongo, the ousted President of Gabon, was granted freedom to leave the country for medical treatment by the military.
The military who removed him from power through a coup said the former president had been freed from house arrest.
Bongo had been under house arrest when he was toppled by a coup shortly after being declared the winner of the much-criticised elections.
Proofreading by James Ojo, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
