The Angola Constitutional Court has nullified the five-year sentence given to José Filomeno dos Santos, the son of former President José Eduardo dos Santos, for involvement in a fraud case related to the illegal transfer of $500 million from Angola’s Sovereign Fund to a UK private account.
The court’s ruling, announced on Thursday, found dos Santos’ conviction “unconstitutional” due to breaches in “legality, adversarial proceedings, a fair and consistent judgment, and the rights of the defense.”
José Filomeno dos Santos, also known as Zenu, previously served as the head of Angola’s Sovereign Wealth Fund from 2013 to 2018.
He was convicted alongside the former governor of Angola’s national bank and three others.
The disputed transfer occurred in 2017, shortly before his father stepped down as president after 38 years in power.
José Eduardo dos Santos had been Angola’s president from 1979 until his resignation in 2017, succeeded by Joao Lourenço, his chosen successor.
