Yahoo News Son of former Guinea-Bissau president jailed in US for drug trafficking
The son of a former president of Guinea-Bissau was sentenced to more than six and a half years in prison for involvement in a transnational heroin trafficking conspiracy, the US Justice Department announced Tuesday.
Malam Bacai Sanha Jr, 52, planned to use the proceeds to finance a coup in the West African country that would lead to his eventual presidency and establishment of a "drugs regime," according to the statement released by the US Attorney for the Southern District of Texas.
"Malam Bacai Sanha Jr. wasn't any ordinary international drug trafficker," said Douglas Williams, special agent in charge of the FBI Houston Field Office.
"He is the son of the former president of Guinea-Bissau and was trafficking drugs for a very specific reason -- to fund a coup."
Sanha was a leader and organiser in the heroin trafficking conspiracy and was involved in its importation from Europe to the United States, according to the statement.
He was arrested along with a co-conspirator after arriving in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania in July 2022. They were extradited to the United States shortly afterwards.
In September 2023, Sanha pled guilty "to conspiracy to distribute a controlled substance for the purpose of unlawful importation," according to Tuesday's statement.
He was sentenced to 80 months in prison.
Read more on RFI English
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