A court in Equatorial Guinea has sentenced Baltasar Ebang Engonga, a senior official and former head of the national financial investigation agency, to eight years in prison for embezzlement.
According to Supreme Court communications director Hilario Mitogo, who announced the decision over WhatsApp on Wednesday, Engonga was found guilty by the Bioko provincial tribunal of misappropriating money from business travel expenditures for personal use.
Additionally, Engonga, also referred to as “Bello,” received a $220,000 fine. In the oil-rich Central African nation, he and five other high-ranking officials were charged with embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Last November, a number of sex tapes featuring the married official and the wives of other officials went viral online, bringing him international attention. According to reports, some of the movies were shot in his finance ministry office, which led to widespread mockery, parodies, and even a mock virility medicine called “Balthazariem.”
Mitogo confirmed that the well-known case came to an end on Wednesday when the provincial court handed down its decision.
