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african politician convictions
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21 records found
APC-001 · Conviction 30 May 2024
Ousman Sonko
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Country The Gambia
Political role Former Gambian interior minister
Crimes against humanity (Swiss conviction)
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; 20-year custodial sentence
The Swiss Federal Criminal Court convicted Sonko of crimes against humanity connected to systematic attacks during Yahya Jammeh's rule.
Status note: The conviction is Swiss jurisdiction; this record does not imply a Gambian domestic verdict.
Source: Swiss Federal Criminal Court
APC-002 · Conviction 5 Aug 2022
Yankuba Touray
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Country The Gambia
Political role Former local-government minister
Murder of former finance minister Ousman Koro Ceesay
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; sentenced to death
A Gambian court convicted Touray for his role in the 1995 killing of former minister Ousman Koro Ceesay.
Status note: Death sentence reported; later execution, appeal or commutation status should be checked against the Gambian courts.
APC-003 · Conviction 10 May 2022
Jolly Nyame
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former governor of Taraba State
Criminal breach of trust and diversion of public funds
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; 12 years' imprisonment
Nigeria's Supreme Court upheld Nyame's conviction over contracts and public funds diverted while he was governor.
Status note: He was later released after a presidential pardon in 2022; the conviction and sentence history remain part of the public record.
Source: Nigeria Supreme Court / EFCC reporting
APC-004 · Conviction 9 Dec 2021
Joshua Dariye
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former governor of Plateau State
Criminal breach of trust and diversion of public funds
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; 14 years' imprisonment
The Supreme Court upheld Dariye's conviction for diverting Plateau State funds during his governorship.
Status note: A presidential pardon led to his release in 2022; it did not turn the underlying trial into an acquittal.
Source: Nigeria Supreme Court / EFCC
APC-005 · Conviction 25 Feb 2020
Olisa Metuh
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former national publicity secretary, Peoples Democratic Party
Money laundering involving funds from the former National Security Adviser
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; seven years' imprisonment at trial
A Federal High Court convicted Metuh on money-laundering counts concerning funds received during the 2015 election period.
Status note: The Court of Appeal later quashed the conviction and ordered a retrial; he is not presented as currently convicted.
Source: Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
APC-006 · Conviction 13 Feb 2018
Abuga Pele
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former Member of Parliament for Chiana-Paga; former NADMO coordinator
Causing financial loss to the state and related corruption offences
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; six years' imprisonment
A Ghanaian High Court convicted Pele over a scheme involving public funds administered through the National Disaster Management Organisation.
Status note: The conviction and sentence were later affected by appellate proceedings; verify the final disposition before treating it as active custody.
Source: Ghana Judiciary / Ghana News Agency
APC-007 · Conviction 16 Mar 2016
Kwame Bawuah-Edusei
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former Ghanaian ambassador and political appointee
False declaration and corruption-related offences
Sentence / outcome: Convicted/pleaded guilty in a United States federal case; sentence recorded by court
Bawuah-Edusei admitted false statements in a United States federal matter after serving in Ghanaian public office.
Status note: This is a United States conviction involving a former Ghanaian public official, not a Ghana domestic corruption judgment.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
APC-008 · Conviction 23 Mar 2015
Karim Wade
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former Senegalese minister of state and presidential adviser
Illicit enrichment
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; six years' imprisonment and fine
Senegal's Court for the Repression of Illicit Enrichment convicted Wade after a high-profile asset investigation.
Status note: President Macky Sall pardoned Wade in 2016; the pardon and later political status should not be confused with acquittal.
Source: Senegalese court reporting / Reuters
APC-009 · Conviction 19 Mar 2019
Khalifa Sall
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former mayor of Dakar and former Member of Parliament
Fraud and misuse of public funds
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; five-year sentence
Sall was convicted over Dakar city funds described by prosecutors as fictitious expenses.
Status note: He was pardoned in 2019 and Senegal's Supreme Court later annulled the parliamentary forfeiture; appeal history is material.
APC-010 · Conviction 21 Mar 2016
Jean-Pierre Bemba
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former vice-president of the DRC and opposition leader
Witness tampering and presenting false evidence
Sentence / outcome: ICC conviction; one-year sentence plus fine
The International Criminal Court convicted Bemba and four associates of corruptly influencing witnesses in the ICC proceedings.
Status note: His separate ICC war-crimes conviction was overturned on appeal in 2018; this record concerns the distinct witness-tampering conviction.
Source: International Criminal Court
APC-011 · Conviction 22 Aug 2019
Ahmed Ouyahia
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former prime minister of Algeria
Corruption, abuse of office and illicit enrichment
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; 15 years' imprisonment at first trial
An Algerian court convicted Ouyahia in a major corruption case involving business figures and former officials.
Status note: His sentence was later reduced on appeal and he received a presidential pardon in 2023.
APC-012 · Conviction 22 Aug 2019
Abdelmalek Sellal
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former prime minister of Algeria
Corruption and abuse of office
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; 12 years' imprisonment at first trial
Sellal was convicted in the same major corruption proceedings concerning state contracts and influence during the former presidency.
Status note: Later appeal and presidential pardon changed his custody status; the record is retained as a historical conviction.
APC-013 · Conviction 15 Nov 2019
Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
Convicted / guilty plea
David Y. Lee · U.S. Department of State · Public domain
Political role Former president of Tunisia
Abuse of office, corruption and customs-related offences
Sentence / outcome: Multiple convictions in absentia; prison terms and fines
Tunisian courts convicted Ben Ali in several post-revolution cases involving corruption and abuse of power.
Status note: He remained outside Tunisia until his death in 2019; individual verdicts and sentence totals varied by case.
APC-014 · Conviction 7 Mar 2018
Hissène Habré
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former president of Chad
Crimes against humanity, war crimes and torture
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; life imprisonment
The Extraordinary African Chambers convicted Habré for abuses committed during his presidency, including torture and crimes against humanity.
Status note: The conviction was affirmed on appeal; Habré died in Senegalese custody in 2021.
Source: Extraordinary African Chambers / Human Rights Watch
APC-015 · Conviction 20 May 2015
Charles Taylor
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former president of Liberia
Aiding and abetting war crimes and crimes against humanity
Sentence / outcome: Special Court for Sierra Leone conviction; 50-year sentence
The Special Court for Sierra Leone convicted Taylor for aiding and abetting atrocities committed by rebels in Sierra Leone.
Status note: The conviction was affirmed on appeal; Taylor is serving his sentence in the United Kingdom.
Source: Residual Special Court for Sierra Leone
APC-016 · Conviction 7 Mar 2012
James Ibori
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former governor of Delta State
Fraud and money laundering
Sentence / outcome: Guilty pleas; 13 years' imprisonment in the United Kingdom
Ibori pleaded guilty in a UK court to fraud and money laundering involving assets accumulated while he was a Nigerian governor.
Status note: His sentence was reduced on appeal to 13 years; he was released in 2016 after serving part of it.
Source: Crown Prosecution Service
APC-017 · Conviction 16 Nov 2011
Zine El Abidine Ben Ali
Convicted / guilty plea
David Y. Lee · U.S. Department of State · Public domain
Political role Former president of Tunisia
Theft and unlawful possession of public property
Sentence / outcome: Convicted in absentia; 35 years' imprisonment and fine
A Tunisian criminal court convicted Ben Ali and his wife in an early post-revolution case involving public funds and property.
Status note: This is one of several separate convictions in absentia; later cases carried different sentences.
APC-018 · Conviction 24 Jul 2008
Eric Amoateng
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former Member of Parliament for Nkoranza North
Conspiracy and immigration fraud
Sentence / outcome: Convicted in the United States; seven years' imprisonment
Amoateng was convicted in a US federal court in a conspiracy involving false immigration documents after his election as a Ghanaian MP.
Status note: This is a US conviction of a former Ghanaian parliamentarian; it is not a Ghana domestic corruption conviction.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice
APC-019 · Conviction 31 Oct 2005
Schabir Shaik
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former political adviser and business associate of Deputy President Jacob Zuma
Fraud and corruption
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; 15 years' imprisonment, later reduced on appeal
Shaik was convicted of soliciting corrupt payments and fraud in a case involving his relationship with then deputy president Zuma.
Status note: He was released on medical parole in 2009; the conviction was not an acquittal.
Source: South African Constitutional Court / Reuters
APC-020 · Conviction 17 Nov 2003
Tony Yengeni
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former chief whip of the African National Congress and Member of Parliament
Fraud involving a discounted luxury vehicle
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; four-year sentence, later reduced and pardoned
Yengeni was convicted for fraud after accepting a discounted vehicle while chairing Parliament's defence committee.
Status note: A presidential pardon in 2006 removed the criminal record; this remains a historical conviction.
Source: South African Constitutional Court / BBC News
APC-021 · Conviction 12 Jun 2001
Allan Boesak
Convicted / guilty plea
No verified reusable portrait located
Political role Former political leader and cleric; former Western Cape ANC chair
Fraud and theft of donor funds
Sentence / outcome: Convicted; three-year sentence, suspended in part
Boesak was convicted after a trial concerning donor money received by the Foundation for Peace and Justice.
Status note: He received a presidential pardon in 2012; the conviction is included as historical context.