Equatorial Guinea Court Jails Ex-Financial Chief, Baltasar Engonga, for Embezzlement

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.

The Bioko provincial tribunal found Engonga guilty of diverting funds from professional travel expenses for personal use, according to Supreme Court press director Hilario Mitogo, who confirmed the ruling via WhatsApp on Wednesday.

Engonga, popularly known as “Bello,” was also fined $220,000. He and five other senior officials were accused of misappropriating hundreds of thousands of dollars in the oil-rich Central African country.

The married official gained global notoriety last November after a series of s+x tapes involving him and wives of fellow officials surfaced online. Some of the videos were reportedly filmed in his finance ministry office, sparking widespread ridicule, parodies, and even a spoof virility dr+g dubbed “Balthazariem.”

Mitogo confirmed that the provincial court delivered its verdict Wednesday, bringing a close to the high-profile case.