On Tuesday, November 11, 2025, the Court of Appeal of Libreville has been convicted for embezzlement of public funds to 20 years in prison Sylvia and Noureddin Bongo, wife and son of the ousted president Ali Bongo, in their absence and that of their lawyers.

The president of the specialized criminal court, Jean Mexant Essa Assoumou, declared Sylvia Bongo guilty of “concealment and embezzlement of public funds and money laundering, usurpation of funds and incitement to forgery”, and Noureddin Bongo of “embezzlement of public money, of concussion, of usurpation of titles and positions, of aggravated money laundering and criminal conspiracy.”

The two defendants were sentenced in absentia to “20 years of criminal imprisonment and 100 million a fine of CFA francs (around 152,000 euros