Africa
Equatorial Guinea Jails Top Official Baltasar Engonga Over Embezzlement and Explosive Sex Tape Scandal
A senior government official in Equatorial Guinea, Baltasar Ebang Engonga, popularly known as “Bello”, has been sentenced to eight years in prison after being convicted of embezzlement in a scandal that shook the nation with both financial crimes and viral sex tapes.
The Bioko provincial court found Engonga guilty of diverting hundreds of thousands of dollars through fake travel claims for personal gain, according to Supreme Court press director Hilario Mitogo.
Engonga, a married former head of the National Financial Investigation Agency, first hit global headlines last November when explicit sex tapes leaked online. The videos, some allegedly filmed in his Finance Ministry office, featured him with wives of fellow senior officials.
The scandal triggered a storm of online ridicule, sparking parody songs, skits, and viral dance challenges, with even a cheeky reference appearing in Burna Boy’s hit track “Tatata.”
Alongside five other senior officials, Engonga was ordered to pay a $220,000 fine in addition to serving his prison sentence.
The case has fueled fresh debates about corruption and abuse of office within Equatorial Guinea’s ruling elite, in a country long criticized for lack of transparency despite its vast oil wealth.
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