Algeria: 10-year prison sentence for former presidential candidates

Three former candidates for the Algerian presidency were sentenced on Monday to 10 years imprisonment for corruption.

They were candidates in last September’s Algerian presidential election, but their files had been rejected.

During the investigation, 50 elected representatives interviewed admitted to having received money in exchange for their sponsorship, and around ten intermediaries to having collected the funds intended for them.

They are businesswoman Saida Neghza, former minister Belkacem Sahli and veterinary products laboratory owner Abdelhakim Hamadi. They were also fined around 6,700 euros.

Some 70 other people, including local councillors, are also accused in this case and have been sentenced to between five and eight years.

The election was won by outgoing president Abdelmadjid Tebboune.