Gabonese ill-gotten gains: BNP Paribas and several members of the Bongo family could be tried in France

The National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) has requested that 23 individuals and legal entities be sent to trial in the Gabonese branch of the so-called "ill-gotten gains" case. The requests concern 18 individuals and five companies, including BNP Paribas and four real estate companies, according to a judicial source contacted by AFP.

Several children of former Gabonese President Omar Bongo are among those targeted, as well as Antoinette Sassou Nguesso, wife of the President of the Republic of Congo, and former Miss France and actress Sonia Rolland.

These requests do not constitute a committal order or a conviction. It is now up to the investigating judges to decide whether the individuals and companies involved will have to appear before the criminal court.

An investigation has been open since 2010

A judicial investigation was opened in France at the end of 2010, following a complaint from Transparency International. As part of this procedure, 52 properties alleged by the prosecution to have been acquired fraudulently were seized, according to the judicial source.

The investigation focuses on the circumstances under which a significant real estate portfolio was allegedly amassed in France using funds obtained through embezzlement, corruption, and illicit commissions. It is a continuation of the Elf affair, which revealed that the French oil company had paid commissions to Omar Bongo, who died in June 2009, and his inner circle.

According to information obtained by AFP, French authorities believe that Omar Bongo allegedly handed over tens of millions of euros in cash to Atelier 74, a Gabonese interior design company, to finance real estate acquisitions. The funds were then reportedly transferred through the company's French bank account.

BNP Paribas denies any criminal liability

BNP Paribas, which has been under investigation since May 2021, is the subject of a referral request for aggravated money laundering, including corruption and embezzlement of public funds, according to the judicial source.

The bank is accused of having allowed the Bongo family and their relatives, through Atelier 74, "to convert funds of criminal origin into real estate transactions, amounting to at least 35 million euros" between 1996 and 2008, according to elements of the indictment consulted by AFP.

"We contest any criminal responsibility of BNP Paribas in this case. We will defend this case, the facts of which we remind you predate 2008," BNP Paribas responded when questioned by AFP.

Several of Omar Bongo's children targeted

The PNF is notably requesting the referral of Pascaline Bongo, eldest daughter of the former Gabonese president, for receiving stolen public funds, money laundering, active and passive corruption and misuse of company assets.

Pascaline Bongo, former chief of staff to her father, is suspected of having fraudulently acquired several apartments located in the 8th and 16th arrondissements of Paris. Jeff, Hermine, Arthur, Omar Denis, Yacine Queenie, Betty, and Grâce Bongo are also among the children named in the indictment.

The lawyers for the other children involved had not responded to AFP's requests for comment at the time of publication.

"This is a highly political case where the principles of law are being severely tested. The aim of the procedure is the confiscation of assets. In my client's case, she was charged 25 years after acquiring an apartment that was purchased perfectly legally. We will therefore contest the effects before the court," commented Elise Arfi, lawyer for Grâce Bongo Odimba, contacted by AFP.

Antoinette Sassou Nguesso and Sonia Rolland are also involved

The National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) is also requesting that Antoinette Sassou Nguesso be sent to trial in connection with an apartment located in the 17th arrondissement of Paris. The First Lady of the Republic of Congo is the subject of an arrest warrant issued in January 2026, according to a source close to the case.

Sonia Rolland is also affected by the dismissal request. The former Miss France received a Parisian apartment in 2003 from Edith Bongo, wife of Omar Bongo, whom she had met two years earlier during the creation of Miss Gabon.

Before the investigating judge, Sonia Rolland presented this apartment as a "gift" and explained that she had not questioned the origin of the funds that enabled its acquisition, according to elements of the procedure which AFP has seen.

A restitution mechanism adopted in 2021

In 2021, France established a system to return funds from the sale of confiscated and illegally acquired assets to the affected populations. This mechanism allocates the funds to cooperation and development projects in the countries of origin.