A former president of Mauritania , Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, has been found guilty, and sentenced frollowokg a trial.
He was arraigned on money laundering and “illicit enrichment” charges.
Abdel Aziz was on Tuesday sentenced to five years in prison for the offences which were said to have been committed during his decade-long reign as the leader of the West African country. He was found guilty of two of the ten charges against him by the court late on Monday, after it looked into claims of corruption and misappropriation of public funds.
However, some of Abdel Aziz’s associates who had also been on trial, including two former prime ministers, were acquitted.
The decision was described as “a political verdict targeting a man and his family” by one of his solicitors, but his conviction, according to the prosecution, was historic.
Although Abdel Aziz was succeeded in 2019 by a political ally, Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, who remains president, his government however quickly came under scrutiny over actions, including deals on offshore oil projects.
Abdel Aziz’s conviction is the biggest against high profile public servants in the country. The former military leader has the option of appealing his sentence at the Supreme Court.
According to Transparency International, Mauritania scored 30 points out of 100 on the 2022 Corruption Perceptions Index. The country averaged 28.00 points from 2006 until 2022, reaching an all-time high of 31.00 Points in 2006, having hit a record low of 23.00 Points in 2010.