Sextapes: Ex-E’Guinea anti-corruption chief faces 18-year jail term

Baltasar Engonga in court

The embattled former Director General of the National Financial Investigation Agency in Equatorial Guinea, Baltasar Engonga, is set to face 18 years imprisonment after he appeared in the Malabo court for his corruption trial.

Engonga had been detained at Black Beach Prison since September 2024 following the corruption probe, and unrelated to the over 400 sextapes involving high-profile women uncovered in his office and house.

He is facing embezzlement charges alongside several other former senior officials.

During Monday’s court proceedings, prosecutors detailed what they described as a sophisticated scheme to divert public funds for personal gain.

The scheme was allegedly coordinated by Engonga during his tenure as head of the Directorate General of Insurance and Reinsurance from 2015 to 2020.

A news platform, Le Bled Parle, reports that the national prosecutor has called for a notably severe punishment: eight years in prison for embezzling public funds, four years and five months for unlawful enrichment, and six years and one day for abuse of power.

In addition to the prison terms, the charges include a recommended fine of over 910 million CFA francs (approximately $ 1.5 million) and a prohibition on holding any public office throughout the sentence period. The 54-year-old Economist is not the only high-ranking official facing trial. Six other former senior government officials are facing trial.

Others, such as Carmelo Julio Matogo Ndong, Ireneo Mangue Monsuy Afana, and Florentina Iganga Iñandji, are also being prosecuted for allegedly misappropriating public funds in what authorities describe as a vast network of financial corruption.

The trial is expected to last three days, with proceedings continuing this week as defence attorneys present their arguments.