A court in Gabon on Wednesday sentenced the country’s former first lady, Sylvia Bongo, and her son, Noureddin Bongo, to 20 years in prison after finding them guilty of embezzling public funds and other related charges.
The pair, aged 62 and 33 respectively, were tried in absentia during a two-day graft trial.
Prosecutors accused them of misappropriating state resources during the rule of Sylvia’s husband, former president Ali Bongo, whose family held power in the oil-rich Central African nation for more than five decades.
Sylvia Bongo was accused of manipulating her husband to divert public money for personal use, allegations she firmly denied. Her son and co-defendant, Noureddin, dismissed the proceedings as a “legal farce” in an interview with AFP last week.
Ali Bongo, who governed for 14 years, was ousted in a military coup on August 30, 2023, just after being declared the winner of a disputed presidential election that the army and opposition described as fraudulent.
He succeeded his father, Omar Bongo Ondimba, who ruled Gabon for 42 years until his death in 2009.
Although the deposed president is not facing prosecution, his wife and son, who both hold French citizenship, were accused of exploiting his frail health following a 2018 stroke to control the country’s affairs for personal gain.
Following their arrest after the coup, they were detained for 20 months before being released in May and allowed to travel to London on medical grounds. Both have since alleged they were tortured during detention.
Ten former associates of the Bongo family are also on trial, charged with complicity in embezzlement. Their hearings are expected to continue until Friday.
Prosecutor Eddy Minang stated that testimonies from witnesses and co-accused during the trial exposed a “system of diverting public funds for the benefit of private interests.”
In May 2024, Sylvia and Noureddin filed a lawsuit in France, claiming they were “repeatedly and violently tortured” by close allies of General Brice Oligui Nguema, the coup leader who later became president.
“We know full well that if we go back, we will suffer things far worse than we have already suffered,” Noureddin Bongo told AFP ahead of the trial.
He said his Gabonese lawyer would not appear in court to avoid “justifying… a legal farce.”
“We are not opposed to the idea of being held accountable for so-called acts we may have committed,” he continued. “But only if it is before an independent and genuine court of law, not one that is clearly under the orders of the executive branch in Gabon.”
The family maintains that the current administration has pressured the judiciary to secure their conviction.
President Brice Oligui Nguema, officially sworn in April 2025, after relinquishing his military post, denied all allegations of torture and pledged that both defendants would receive a “fair trial.”
