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Former DR Congo vice- president Bemba found guilty of bribing witnesses

International Criminal Court

The International Criminal Court has found Jean -Pierre Bemba guilty of bribing witnesses.

The Hague based court found the former vice -president of the Democratic Republic of Congo and four members of his defense team guilty of having influenced 14 witnesses and soliciting them to lie, by coaching them in what to say and how to behave in court.

#Bemba et al. case: #ICC Trial Chamber VII finds 5 accused guilty of offences against the administration of justice https://t.co/jpDvKK6otS pic.twitter.com/e9dTrvRCs0

— Int'l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt) October 19, 2016

The verdict against Bemba and his legal team is the first corruption trial in the history of the ICC.

In March, Bemba was sentenced to 18 years in prison after the court unanimously found him guilty of war crime and crimes against humanity committed in neighbouring Central African Republic by his militia in 2002 – 2003.

News agencies