Mr Baltasar Engonga, the infamous former Director General of Equatorial Guinea’s National Financial Investigation Agency, faces 18 years in prison after appearing in Malabo court for his corruption trial.
Engonga has been jailed at Black Beach Prison since September 2024 as part of a corruption investigation unrelated to the over 400 sex tapes involving high-profile women discovered in his workplace and home.
He faces embezzlement allegations alongside numerous other former senior officials.
During Monday’s court sessions, prosecutors presented a complex plot to divert public cash for personal benefit.
Engonga allegedly orchestrated the plan while serving as Director General of Insurance and Reinsurance from 2015 to 2020.
According to Le Bled Parle, the national prosecutor has proposed a particularly harsh punishment: eight years in prison for embezzling public funds, four years and five months for illicit enrichment, and six years and one day for abuse of power.
In addition to the prison terms, the accusations include a suggested fine of more than 910 million CFA francs (about $1.5 million) and a ban on holding public office during the punishment time.
The 54-year-old economist isn’t the only high-ranking figure under trial.
Six additional former top government officials are on trial.
Several individuals, including Carmelo Julio Matogo Ndong, Ireneo Mangue Monsuy Afana, and Florentina Iganga Iñandji, are facing prosecution for allegedly misappropriating public monies in a widespread financial corruption scheme.
The trial is scheduled to last three days, with procedures continuing this week as defence attorneys submit their case.
Recall that during the fraud inquiry, Engonga was caught with over 400 sex tapes of the wives of prominent figures in the country.
ANIF authorities conducted an unplanned search of his home and office, discovering multiple CDs that later exposed his sex exploits with various married ladies.
The tapes apparently show contacts with high-profile people such as his brother’s wife, his cousin, the sister of Equatorial Guinea’s president, the wife of the director general of police, and the wives of around 20 of the country’s ministries, among others.
The videos, discovered in his personal office, were said to have been recorded with consent and have since been leaked online, causing a media uproar, with many describing him as the “King Solomon of our times”.
