Guinea’s former Constitutional Court president, Mohamed Lamine Bangoura, has been sentenced to seven years in prison after being convicted of corruption and embezzling more than $20 million in public funds.
The country’s special anti-corruption court delivered the ruling on Wednesday, October 21, following an investigation into the management of funds allocated to the Constitutional Court.
According to Africanews and AFP, the court also convicted Bangoura of illicit enrichment and money laundering.
Guinea court orders asset confiscation
The Court for the Repression of Economic and Financial Offences (CRIEF) imposed a substantial fine on Bangoura.
It also ordered him to pay damages to the Guinean state alongside two co-defendants who remain fugitives.
In addition, the court banned the former senior judge from holding public office for five years.
Authorities were also instructed to confiscate his assets in Guinea and neighbouring Senegal.
The case centred on allegations of financial misconduct during Bangoura’s leadership of the Constitutional Court.
Prosecutors accused him of mismanaging public funds intended for the institution.
Former Constitutional Court chief denies wrongdoing
Bangoura has remained in detention since December 2022.
Throughout the proceedings, he rejected the allegations against him.
His defence lawyers maintained that he had not committed the offences and called for his acquittal.
However, the court found him guilty and imposed the seven-year prison sentence.
The ruling marks another major conviction under Guinea’s anti-corruption campaign targeting former senior officials.
Anti-corruption court targets former officials
Bangoura was among approximately 180 former ministers and senior officials linked to the administration of former President Alpha Condé.
Condé was removed from power in September 2021 following a military coup led by Mamady Doumbouya.
After taking control, the military authorities established CRIEF to investigate financial crimes and alleged misuse of public resources.
The court has since pursued cases involving officials from the previous government.
Authorities have presented the investigations as part of efforts to tackle corruption and recover public funds.
However, critics have questioned whether the judicial process is being applied fairly.
Guinea’s political transition faces criticism
Doumbouya initially governed Guinea as the country’s military leader after the 2021 coup.
He was subsequently elected president in 2025 in a vote that lacked substantial opposition, according to Africanews.
Opposition groups have accused his administration of restricting political freedoms and weakening democratic institutions.
They have also alleged that the judicial system is being used against political opponents.
The government has maintained its focus on financial accountability and prosecuting alleged corruption.
Bangoura’s conviction comes amid continuing debate over judicial independence and political freedoms in Guinea.
The former Constitutional Court president has denied the charges, while the court’s ruling orders imprisonment, financial penalties and the confiscation of assets.