A senior Equatorial Guinean official, Baltasar Ebang Engonga, has been sentenced to eight years in prison for embezzling state funds, a year after he was embroiled in a viral sex tape scandal.
Engonga, who once headed the National Financial Investigation Agency (ANIF), was found guilty of diverting large sums of money by falsifying travel expenses. Five other officials were also implicated in the scheme.
The case gained international attention after several explicit videos of Engonga with the wives of fellow officials leaked online, some allegedly filmed inside his Finance Ministry office.
The footage sparked an avalanche of memes, parody songs, and jokes, including a spoof male-enhancement product dubbed “Balthazariem.”
Despite the sensational scandal, the Bioko provincial tribunal focused on corruption charges, handing down both a prison term and a $220,000 fine.
