Equatorial Guinea’s Engonga bags 8yr-jail term for embezzlement after sex tape scandal

A high-ranking government official in Equatorial Guinea, Baltasar Ebang Engonga, has been sentenced to eight years in prison for embezzlement, deepening a scandal that has rocked the oil-rich nation.

The Bioko Provincial Tribunal delivered the ruling on Wednesday, convicting Engonga of diverting public funds originally allocated for official travel expenses for his personal use. The development was confirmed in a statement by the country’s Supreme Court press director, Hilario Mitogo.

Engonga, who previously headed the National Financial Investigation Agency, was not only implicated in the financial crimes but also gained notoriety after being featured in a series of leaked sex tapes allegedly involving the wives of other government officials.

Authorities revealed that Engonga, along with five other senior officials, embezzled travel expense funds amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Nicknamed “Bello”, Engonga made world headlines in November with the sex tapes, some of them filmed in his office at the finance ministry, published on social media while he was in detention pending the embezzlement case.

The clips prompted a wave of online parodies, including songs and dances and posts about a spoof virility drug dubbed “Balthazariem”.

Mitogo said the provincial court handed Engonga an eight-year sentence and a fine worth $220,000.

AFP