Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo
He is the fearsome Central African Republic dictator who rules his
country with an iron-fist and allegedly skins enemies alive and eats
their testicles and livers.
Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo is Africa's longest serving leader having been in power since 1979.
He extended his rule in April when he was re-elected with 93.7 per
cent of the vote. The opposition claimed at least 200 of its members
were barred from voting.
He seized power from his tyrannic uncle three decades ago and had him executed by firing squad.
The new president relaxed some of the restrictions of his
predecessor - such as a ban on the Catholic Church - but kept the
absolute control he inherited.
Over the years 'the torturer in chief' has accumulated
huge wealth while most Equatorial Guineas remain in crushing poverty,
with little or no access to decent healthcare or education.
The country has become sub-Saharan Africa's third-biggest oil
producer in recent years, but the wealth is not shared across the
nation.
Most shockingly, the 74-year-old - who is viewed as being one of
the world's most brutal dictators - has been accused of cannibalism by
his political opponents.
One rival, Severo Moto, recalled how Obiang had 'just devoured a
political commissioner...I say devoured because this commissioner was
buried without the testicles and the brain.'
'[He] wants me to go back to Guinea ... [so he can] eat my testicles.'
Elsewhere, a presidential aide revealed during a show on state radio how the leader was 'in permanent contact with the Almighty'.
He said: 'He can decide to kill without anyone calling him to
account and without going to hell because it is God himself, with whom
he is in permanent contact, and who gives him this strength.'
It comes as his playboy son will go on trial in France on charges
of plundering his country to fund a jet-set lifestyle in Paris.
Teodorin Obiang, currently vice president, is accused of using the
proceeds of corruption and embezzlement to fund an array of luxury
purchases, from private jets and top properties to pop star Michael
Jackson's famous white glove.
Obiang Senior has also been pursued in French courts for allegedly
plundering state coffers to buy luxury homes and cars in France.
The trial will be the first arising from a series of landmark
investigations in France into the alleged ill-gotten gains of a handful
of African leaders.
Prosecutors will show how Obiang, now 47, amassed French assets
worth several tens of millions of euros between 2007 and 2011, 'either
directly or through front men or shell companies', a source close to the
investigation said.
Obiang was agriculture minister for his father Teodoro Obiang
Nguema in the tiny central African nation at the time, earning a
government salary of under $100,000 (89,000 euros) a year.
He will face charges of laundering the proceeds of corruption, embezzlement, misuse of public funds and breach of trust.
US authorities have also pursued Obiang junior, accusing him of
racking up more than $300 million through embezzlement, extortion and
money laundering.
In October 2014, he was forced to turn over more than $30 million
in ill-gotten gains - including a Malibu villa, a Ferrari and Michael
Jackson memorabilia.
He managed, however, to hang onto the white glove Jackson wore during his 'Bad' tour.
Other leaders under investigation in France include Republic of
Congo's President Denis Sassou Nguesso, the late Omar Bongo of Gabon and
Francois Bozize, former president of the Central African Republic.
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