Angolan President João Lourenço has pardoned around 50 prisoners, including the son of his predecessor, José Eduardo dos Santos, who was serving a five-year jail term for embezzlement.
A presidential decree posted on Facebook on Wednesday cited “good behaviour” and the “absence of social danger” as reasons for granting freedom to the convicts.
José Eduardo dos Santos, who died in 2022, ruled energy-rich Angola for 38 years until 2017. His son, José Filomeno dos Santos, 46, had been convicted of crimes including embezzlement and influence trafficking.
He was jailed for fraud in 2020 after $500 million was transferred from the National Bank of Angola to an account in the UK. Three others, including the former governor of Angola’s national bank, were also sentenced.
The decree added that the pardon was linked to the upcoming 50th anniversary of Angola’s independence from Portugal
