E.Guinea leader's son gets suspended jail term in Paris graft trial

PARIS: A French court handed down a three-year suspended jail term on Friday to the son of Equatorial Guinea's leader, Teodorin Obiang, after convicting him of using public money to fund a jet-set lifestyle in Paris.
The 48-year-old vice president of the small west African state, who was tried in absentia, was also given a suspended fine of 30 million euros (RM147.74 million) by judges for embezzlement, money laundering, corruption and abuse of trust.
The case, which was sparked by two anti-corruption NGOs, is the first of three involving families of African leaders, which campaigners hope signals a new willingness of French authorities to tackle money laundering.
Paris has long been a favoured destination for the ill-gotten gains of wealthy figures linked to political leaders in Africa, particularly in France's former colonies.
"Every year billions of euros are embezzled to fund the profligate lifestyle of a few corrupt leaders abroad, particularly in France," anti-corruption group Transparency International said ahead of the ruling.
Obiang is estimated to have used France to launder 150 million euros in misappropriated funds.
His lawyers slammed the ruling as an "activist decision" and said they were considering an appeal, while some in his home country, an oil-rich but impoverished nation of around 750,000 people, thought the punishment was too lenient.
By suspending the sentences, the court has opened the way for Obiang to return to France without facing arrest. Only if he re-offends would he face jail time or have to pay the fine.
The judges said the ruling was meant "mainly as a warning" to the defendant.
They criticised France's central bank and the Societe Generale bank for their handling of Obiang's affairs, saying they had given him cause to think there was "a form of tolerance" in France for money laundering.
Speaking to AFP in the capital of Equatorial Guinea, Malabo, opposition lawmaker Placido Mico said the sentence had "not lived up to expectations".
"It's unacceptable that African leaders use the people's money to live it up in Europe while the population at home dies of hunger."
In a statement read out on state television on Friday night, Obiang's ruling party, the PDGE, criticised the trial and those who brought the case.
"The sentence is a real failure for those fake NGOs and opponents whose sole motivation was to destabilise the institutions of Equatorial Guinea," the statement said.
The families of late Gabonese leader Omar Bongo and the Republic of Congo's President Denis Sassou Nguesso are also under investigation for embezzlement.
Fast cars and snazzy suits
During his three-week trial in June and July, the court heard about the fortune and playboy Parisian lifestyle of Obiang, who is the son of Equatorial Guinea's president of 38 years, Teodoro Obiang Nguema.
He was accused of spending more than 1,000 times his official annual salary on a six-storey mansion in a posh part of the French capital, a fleet of fast cars and artworks, among other assets.
The court ruled Friday that his 107-million-euro (US$123-million) mansion near the Champs-Elysees avenue — which boasts a hammam, a disco and gold-plated taps — should be confiscated, along with other assets.
When investigators first raided the home, they hired trucks to haul away a fleet of Bugattis, Ferraris, a Rolls-Royce Phantom and other cars as evidence.
Obiang's tastes also included suits from Paris's top tailors, whom he paid with suitcases of cash, as well as Michael Jackson memorabilia.
Court battle ahead
Obiang was agriculture and forestry minister before being promoted by his father to vice president in 2012, putting him in pole position to succeed him as leader when the post becomes vacant.
Many of his eye-popping purchases were made through Somagui Forestal, a forestry company that prosecutors called "an empty shell used solely to channel public money".
Obiang, who did not attend the trial, insisted the money came from legitimate sources and his lawyers accused France of "meddling in the affairs of a sovereign state".
The fate of his residence is likely to to be suject of a prolonged court battle because Equatorial Guinea argues that it is a diplomatic mission and therefore untouchable.
Obiang's lawyers have appealed the confiscation to the International Court of Justice in The Hague which must decide whether it should be offered the same protections as other diplomatic buildings.
Transparency International has demanded that any money recovered from the sale of Obiang's assets be returned to Equatorial Guinea instead of going into French state coffers. — AFP