JUST IN: Ex-President’s Son, Two Others Sent To Jail (DETAILS)

JUST IN: Ex-President’s Son, Two Others Sent To Jail (DETAILS)

A Mozambican court sentenced two ex-spy bosses and the son of a former president to 12 years in prison on Wednesday for their roles in a corruption scandal in which the government attempted to conceal massive debts, causing financial havoc.

Gregorio Leao, the former head of security and intelligence; Antonio do Rosario, the head of the security service’s economic intelligence division; and ex-president Armando Guebuza’s son Ndambi Guebuza were among 19 defendants charged in the country’s biggest graft scandal.

“The crimes committed have brought consequences whose effects will last for generations,” said Judge Efigenio Baptista.

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The scandal arose after state-owned companies in the impoverished country illegally borrowed $2 billion (1.9 billion euros) from international banks in 2013 and 2014 to purchase a tuna-fishing fleet and surveillance vessels.

The government concealed the loans from parliament and the general public.

When the “hidden debt” was finally revealed in 2016, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and other donors withdrew financial assistance, precipitating a sovereign debt default and currency collapse.

An independent audit discovered that $500 million in loans had been diverted. The funds are still missing.

Following a week of reading the verdicts, the judge handed down the sentence, stating that the scam “aggravated the impoverishment of thousands of Mozambicans.”

“The country became famous for the worst reasons,” he said.

Leao and do Rosario were found guilty of embezzlement and abuse of power, while Guebuza was found guilty of embezzlement, money laundering, and criminal association, among other charges.

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