LIBREVILLE, Gabon — A court in Gabon has sentenced former First Lady Sylvia Bongo Ondimba and her son Noureddin Bongo Valentin, the son of deposed president Ali Bongo, to 20 years in prison for embezzlement of public funds and related corruption offences.
The judgment, delivered Wednesday after a two-day trial, found the pair guilty of diverting state resources for personal gain during Ali Bongo’s 14-year rule.
Both Sylvia, 62, and Noureddin, 33, were tried in absentia, having left the country in May for London, officially on medical grounds.
Prosecutors accused the two of exploiting the former leader’s ill health — following a 2018 stroke — to seize control of the presidency’s finances and state institutions, effectively running the oil-rich nation for their own profit.
“Statements by the co-accused and witnesses revealed a system of diverting public funds for the benefit of private interests,” said Prosecutor Eddy Minang in court.
Sylvia, who denied the charges, was accused of manipulating her husband to authorise massive transfers from public coffers. Her son Noureddin dismissed the proceedings as a “legal farce”, alleging the judiciary was acting under pressure from Gabon’s military-led government.
The former president, Ali Bongo Ondimba, who ruled Gabon for 14 years until his August 30, 2023 ouster in a military coup, is not facing prosecution.
The coup, led by General Brice Oligui Nguema, came minutes after Bongo was controversially declared winner in a disputed election widely condemned as fraudulent.
Both Sylvia and Noureddin claim they were tortured during their 20-month detention following the coup. In May 2024, they filed a lawsuit in France accusing Oligui’s security officers of repeated and violent abuse — claims the new government has denied.
“We know full well that if we go back, we will suffer things far worse than we have already suffered,” Noureddin told AFP ahead of the trial. “We are not opposed to accountability — but only before an independent and genuine court of law.”
The Bongo family ruled Gabon for 55 years, beginning with Omar Bongo Ondimba, who governed for over four decades until his death in 2009. His son Ali succeeded him, extending the family’s political dynasty until his fall in 2023.
Ten of the Bongos’ former allies are also on trial for alleged complicity in the embezzlement scheme, with proceedings expected to continue through Friday.
General Oligui, who was sworn in as president in April, has rejected the Bongos’ torture claims and insists the trials are fair and transparent.
The sentencing marks a dramatic turn in Gabon’s post-coup political order — a public repudiation of one of Africa’s longest-standing ruling families.
