Mayor of Senegal’s capital jailed for fraud

By Alpha Kamara

FREETOWN, Sierra Leone (AA) - The mayor of Senegal’s capital Dakar has been sentenced to 5 years in prison over corruption and fraud charges.

Khalifa Sall, the mayor of Dakar, has been in detention since March 2017 when he was charged for embezzling 1.8 billion CFA francs ($3.4 million) between 2011 and 2015 meant for the development of Dakar.

Malick Lamotte, the judge, and his associates found Sall guilty and sentenced him to five years imprisonment.

“The court believed that Mr. Sall used fake receipts for public services,” the verdict said.

The mayor's lawyers pleaded their client's acquittal saying the verdict will affect his political career.

Khalifa Sall was a popular choice of his party to contest against President Macky Sall in the next presidential elections in 2019.

The opposition Socialist Party youth representative Pope Babacar Mbaye said the verdict is a conspiracy against their leader.

“We want the world to know that Khalifa Sall has been condemned to restrict him from contesting against President Macky Sall in the next elections,” Mbaye told reporters outside the court.