A court in Equatorial Guinea has sentenced Ruslan Obiang Nsue, son of long-serving President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, to six years in prison for illegally selling a plane belonging to the country’s national airline.
Supreme Court press director Hilario Mitogo confirmed the verdict on Tuesday, telling reporters that the ruling allows Nsue to avoid prison if he repays the value of the missing aircraft.
“The judge ruled that Ruslan Obiang Nsue must serve six years in jail unless he compensates the state for the missing aircraft,” Mitogo said.
According to AFP, the 50-year-old former director of Ceiba Intercontinental was found guilty of selling the airline’s ATR 72-500 plane to a Spanish company and pocketing the money.
Nsue previously served as deputy general manager of the airline before being dismissed. He also held a government role as Secretary of State for Sports and Youth.
Authorities arrested him in 2023 and placed him under house arrest on the orders of his half-brother, Vice President Nguema Obiang Mangue.
Investigators later discovered that the aircraft, which had been undergoing maintenance in Spain since 2018, was secretly sold to Binter Technic, a Spanish maintenance firm.
The court’s decision gives Nsue the option of paying approximately $255,000 to the airline in addition to damages and a state fine to avoid prison.
Prosecutors, however, are pushing for a much harsher penalty, seeking 18 years in prison and a fine of 500 million CFA francs (about $847,000).
While Nsue was convicted of the illegal sale, he was acquitted of separate charges of embezzlement and abuse of office.
This case has reignited attention on the Obiang family, which has ruled the oil-rich Central African nation for more than four decades.
President Obiang, now 83, is the world’s longest-serving leader, having been in power since 1979.
The scandal adds to a long history of corruption allegations targeting the ruling family.
In July 2021, a French court convicted Vice President Nguema Obiang Mangue of embezzling public funds, handing him a suspended prison sentence and ordering him to pay a $35 million fine.
The conviction of Ruslan Obiang Nsue underscores the growing internal cracks within the family’s political empire.
Analysts say the case also reflects attempts by Equatorial Guinea’s leadership to project an image of accountability, even though power remains concentrated within the ruling clan.