A former youth and culture minister in Rwanda Edouard Bamporiki was given a five-year prison term for corruption-related offences, which is one year longer than the prior sentence.
When Bamporiki’s original sentence was handed down last year, it was a rare instance of a high-ranking official being found guilty of corruption in the nation.
In May of last year, he was removed from the government and placed under house arrest while a corruption and power abuse investigation was underway. Up to this decision, he was still under house arrest.
Bamporiki admitted to the allegations on Twitter and begged President Paul Kagame’s pardon, but a court sentenced him to four years in prison in September, and he challenged the decision.
On Monday, a high court judge in the capital, Kigali, said “justice needs to be served to set an example”.
The 39-year-old poet and filmmaker was previously a vigorous supporter of President Kagame and the ruling party and rose rapidly through the ranks.
His attorney, Evode Kayitana, informed the reporters that they had not made up their minds regarding an appeal.