A court in Equatorial Guinea has sentenced Ruslan Obiang Nsue, son of President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, to six years in prison for illegally selling a national aircraft.

The ruling, delivered on Tuesday, August 26, found Obiang Nsue guilty of secretly selling a Ceiba Intercontinental-owned ATR 72-500 to a Spanish firm and pocketing the money.

However, the 50-year-old former director of the airline can escape jail if he refunds about $255,000 to the company, alongside damages and a state fine.

Obiang Nsue, who was placed under house arrest in 2023 on the orders of his half-brother, Vice President Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, was acquitted of separate charges of embezzlement and abuse of office.

Prosecutors had earlier demanded an 18-year jail term and a fine of 500 million CFA francs (about $850,000), but the court opted for a lighter sentence.

Before his troubles, Ruslan Obiang served as secretary of state for sports and youth. His father, now 83, has ruled the oil-rich Central African nation for more than 40 years, making him the world’s longest-serving president.

This is not the first time the powerful Obiang family has been caught in corruption scandals. In 2012, Vice President Obiang Mangue was convicted in France for embezzling public funds, receiving a suspended prison sentence and a $35 million fine.