Equatorial Guinea President’s Son Convicted For Selling National Airline Plane

Equatorial Guinea President’s Son Convicted For Selling National Airline Plane

A court in Equatorial Guinea has found Ruslan Obiang Nsue, son of President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, guilty of unlawfully selling a plane owned by the national airline, according to a statement from a court official.

On Tuesday, the judge ruled that Obiang Nsue, 50, must serve a six-year prison sentence unless he reimburses the government for the missing aircraft.

Supreme Court press director Hilario Mitogo confirmed the decision via WhatsApp, stating that the former director of Ceiba Intercontinental had sold the ATR 72-500 aircraft to a Spanish firm and kept the proceeds.

Obiang Nsue was placed under house arrest in 2023 by order of his half-brother, Vice President Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, who is also a son of the president.

The court determined that Obiang Nsue could avoid imprisonment by paying approximately $255,000 to the airline, in addition to damages and a state-imposed fine.

He was cleared of separate allegations involving embezzlement and abuse of office.

Previously, Obiang Nsue held the role of secretary of state for sports and youth in the oil-rich nation, which has been under his father’s rule for over four decades.

In a related case, a French court in July 2021 convicted Vice President Obiang Mangue of misappropriating public funds, issuing a suspended prison sentence and a $35 million fine.