Guinea's Former Constitutional Court President Jailed 7 Years For Corruption

The former president of Guinea’s Constitutional Court, Mohamed Lamine Bangoura, was sentenced to seven years in prison on Wednesday for corruption and embezzlement of public funds.

A special court convicted Bangoura of illicit enrichment, corruption, embezzlement of public funds and money laundering in connection with the management of money allocated to the Constitutional Court.

Bangoura is among approximately 180 high-ranking officials and former ministers from the administration of ex-president Alpha Conde (2010-2021) targeted in proceedings since November 2022.

He was ordered to pay a fine of two billion Guinean francs ($225,000), while the court also ordered the confiscation of his assets in Guinea and neighbouring Senegal.

Two co-defendants, each on the run, were sentenced to 10 years in prison and fined five billion Guinean francs each. The three men were also ordered to jointly pay 41 billion Guinean francs to the state.

Bangoura, who has been in detention since December 2022, contested the charges and his defence team argued for acquittal.

Shortly after the 2021 military coup that ousted Conde, leaders set up a special court for financial crimes (CRIEF), which handed down the sentence.

Conde was overthrown in a 2021 coup that brought to power Mamady Doumbouya, who ruled first as junta chief before being elected president late last year in a vote with no substantial opposition.

Guinea’s opposition has denounced the suppression of freedoms and alleged the judicial system is being weaponised under Doumbouya.