Embezzlement at DEI: eight-year prison sentence for a police officer, complicit couple given suspended sentence
An eight-year sentence of criminal imprisonment and a fine of ten million CFA francs: that’s the punishment handed down to a police officer found guilty of diversion of public funds and money laundering.
The verdict was made on Wednesday, July 16, 2025, by the Court for the Repression of Economic Crimes and Terrorism (CRIET), in a case whose ramifications date back to December 2019.
At the time of the crime, the officer was assigned to the Directorate of Emigration and Immigration (DEI). he was accused of embezzling 150 million CFA francs from the coffers of this strategic administration. An internal audit led to an inquiry that uncovered a hasty personal scheme involving informal loans, property transactions, and alleged accomplices.
At the hearing, the policeman admitted to the crime. He explained that he initially lent 50 million CFA francs to a former banker, whom he had met through frequent visits to her bank. She reportedly urgently asked him for the money to cover a deficit, promising an immediate repayment.
But the days passed without any reimbursement. That’s when a man claiming to be the banker’s husband, a business operator, stepped in, stating he would repay not in cash but via a property for sale.
Wishing to get his money back quickly, the policeman embarked on a property buyout operation, investing another 100 million CFA francs pulled from the DEI’s cashbox. In his view, the idea was to secure his loan by acquiring the property, even if it meant selling it again to replenish the funds. This plan never materialized. An unexpected financial control revealed the 150 million CFA francs hole.
Before the judges, the former banker and her husband denied any involvement, dismissing any idea of complicity. However, the court found their version unconvincing. The couple was found guilty of complicity in embezzlement and money laundering. They each received suspended sentences of five years in prison and ten million in fines.
Furthermore, the CRIET allowed for the civil interests of the State Judicial Officer, paving the way for a possible financial compensation procedure.
In preventive detention since December 12, 2019, the police officer still has a little over two years to serve before he can hope to regain his freedom. This case, emblematic of internal misconduct in some administrations, has reignited the debate on control mechanisms and the flow of public money within Benin’s state apparatus.
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