How France is prosecuting foreign despots and their families
France is on a mission to prosecute foreign leaders and their families who are accused of pilfering public funds in their impoverished homelands to fund a lavish lifestyle abroad.
On Wednesday, a top Paris court upheld the conviction of Rifaat al-Assad, the Syrian president's uncle who was convicted in one of a groundbreaking series of "ill-gotten gains" cases.
Here's a roundup of the big names that have been swept up in the investigations that have so far focused on the ruling families of three oil-rich African countries as well as Syria.
Bugattis and top bottles
Acting on a complaint brought by anti-corruption campaigners, French investigators in September 2011 raid the six-storey Paris mansion of Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema, hauling away 11 luxury cars, including a Bugatti and a Ferrari, nine of which were later auctioned off.
A year after the raid, they seize the property on the chic Avenue Foch near the Arc de Triomphe, removing paintings by famous artists, a clock worth an estimated €three million and wines worth thousands of euros a bottle, among other valuables.
Obiang's eldest son Teodorin Obiang, known as a big spender with a fondness for Michael Jackson memorabilia, is the target of the investigation.
At the time, he is vice president of Equatorial Guinea, which his father has ruled with an iron fist since 1979.
In 2014, the younger Obiang is charged with corruption and embezzlement. He denies the charges, claiming he amassed his wealth legally and enjoys diplomatic immunity -- but France's top court rules that the charges stand because they relate exclusively to his private life.
In 2020, he is sentenced to a three-year suspended prison sentence and a fine of €30 million. He is appealing the verdict.
Obiang has also been forced to forfeit millions of dollars of assets in the US and slapped with sanctions by Britain.
Bongo and Sassou Nguesso
In 2015, the family of Congo-Brazzaville President Denis Sassou Nguesso comes under the spotlight when investigating magistrates seize several properties suspected of belonging to his nephew Wilfrid Nguesso.
A year later, two Paris apartments registered in the name of Sassou Nguesso's wife Antoinette are also seized as part of an investigation into suspected corruption.
In 2017, Wilfrid Nguesso is charged with laundering the proceeds of embezzlement and two years later one of the president's sons, Denis Christel Sassou Nguesso, is hit with similar charges.
In 2016, investigators zero in on properties belonging to the family of the late leader of neighbouring Gabon, including a villa in Nice and a Paris townhouse linked to the country's president of 41 years, Omar Bongo.
In 2017, that investigation is closed without charges being brought.
But a new chapter begins in 2021 when BNP Paribas bank is indicted for "laundering corruption and embezzlement of public funds" in the investigation of Bongo's assets. The French bank recognises "shortcomings" but disputes any "fraudulent intention".
In March and April 2022, four of Omar Bongo's children are charged with concealment of embezzlement of public funds.
Five more of his 54 children are in turn charged in June and July with having knowingly profited from an estimated €85 million of French assets acquired "fraudulently" in France by Bongo.
Assad's uncle
Dubbed the "Butcher of Hama" for his alleged role in putting down an uprising in central Syria in 1982, Rifaat al-Assad has been under investigation in France since 2014.
He has been tried for crimes allegedly committed between 1984 and 2016, including aggravated tax fraud and misappropriation of Syrian funds.
He was cleared over the 1984 to 1996 period but convicted of laundering funds embezzled from the Syrian public purse between 1996 and 2016. He was also convicted of tax fraud.
In 2021, the Paris appeals court upheld the verdict and ordered that an estimated €90 million in assets be seized, including two townhouses in chic Parisian neighbourhoods, a stud farm, about 40 apartments and a chateau.
France's top administrative court upheld the conviction on Wednesday.
Comments
See Also
On Wednesday, a top Paris court upheld the conviction of Rifaat al-Assad, the Syrian president's uncle who was convicted in one of a groundbreaking series of "ill-gotten gains" cases.
Here's a roundup of the big names that have been swept up in the investigations that have so far focused on the ruling families of three oil-rich African countries as well as Syria.
Bugattis and top bottles
Acting on a complaint brought by anti-corruption campaigners, French investigators in September 2011 raid the six-storey Paris mansion of Equatorial Guinea's President Teodoro Obiang Nguema, hauling away 11 luxury cars, including a Bugatti and a Ferrari, nine of which were later auctioned off.
A year after the raid, they seize the property on the chic Avenue Foch near the Arc de Triomphe, removing paintings by famous artists, a clock worth an estimated €three million and wines worth thousands of euros a bottle, among other valuables.
Obiang's eldest son Teodorin Obiang, known as a big spender with a fondness for Michael Jackson memorabilia, is the target of the investigation.
At the time, he is vice president of Equatorial Guinea, which his father has ruled with an iron fist since 1979.
In 2014, the younger Obiang is charged with corruption and embezzlement. He denies the charges, claiming he amassed his wealth legally and enjoys diplomatic immunity -- but France's top court rules that the charges stand because they relate exclusively to his private life.
In 2020, he is sentenced to a three-year suspended prison sentence and a fine of €30 million. He is appealing the verdict.
Obiang has also been forced to forfeit millions of dollars of assets in the US and slapped with sanctions by Britain.
Bongo and Sassou Nguesso
In 2015, the family of Congo-Brazzaville President Denis Sassou Nguesso comes under the spotlight when investigating magistrates seize several properties suspected of belonging to his nephew Wilfrid Nguesso.
A year later, two Paris apartments registered in the name of Sassou Nguesso's wife Antoinette are also seized as part of an investigation into suspected corruption.
In 2017, Wilfrid Nguesso is charged with laundering the proceeds of embezzlement and two years later one of the president's sons, Denis Christel Sassou Nguesso, is hit with similar charges.
In 2016, investigators zero in on properties belonging to the family of the late leader of neighbouring Gabon, including a villa in Nice and a Paris townhouse linked to the country's president of 41 years, Omar Bongo.
In 2017, that investigation is closed without charges being brought.
But a new chapter begins in 2021 when BNP Paribas bank is indicted for "laundering corruption and embezzlement of public funds" in the investigation of Bongo's assets. The French bank recognises "shortcomings" but disputes any "fraudulent intention".
In March and April 2022, four of Omar Bongo's children are charged with concealment of embezzlement of public funds.
Five more of his 54 children are in turn charged in June and July with having knowingly profited from an estimated €85 million of French assets acquired "fraudulently" in France by Bongo.
Assad's uncle
Dubbed the "Butcher of Hama" for his alleged role in putting down an uprising in central Syria in 1982, Rifaat al-Assad has been under investigation in France since 2014.
He has been tried for crimes allegedly committed between 1984 and 2016, including aggravated tax fraud and misappropriation of Syrian funds.
He was cleared over the 1984 to 1996 period but convicted of laundering funds embezzled from the Syrian public purse between 1996 and 2016. He was also convicted of tax fraud.
In 2021, the Paris appeals court upheld the verdict and ordered that an estimated €90 million in assets be seized, including two townhouses in chic Parisian neighbourhoods, a stud farm, about 40 apartments and a chateau.
France's top administrative court upheld the conviction on Wednesday.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.