Benin: CRIET sentences a man to 5 years in prison and a 20 million FCFA fine for forging a presidential decree

The sentence, according to Libre Express, is five years in prison and a fine of 20 million CFA francs.

According to the case file, the accused is said to have swindled 15 million FCFA from his pastor using a fake project document called PAG Mirador. To make the scam seem plausible, he allegedly forged a decree involving national authorities, notably attaching the presumed signatures of Patrice Talon, Minister of the Living Environment José Didier Tonato, and Finance Minister Romuald Wadagni.

At the hearing, the defendant admitted having derived his falsified text from an authentic decree but denied having used it. However, a judge noted that he had presented it as supporting evidence to his victims.

The CRIET’s criminal chamber reclassified the charges as ‘Internet fraud’, confirming that the offence falls under digital criminal law. In addition to the prison sentence and fine, the Court ordered the confiscation of the falsified document as well as the defendant’s mobile phone.

Three victims, including the pastor who was defrauded, did not pursue their status as civil parties, according to the media outlet.

At the hearing on June 25, 2025, the special prosecutor’s office at the CRIET had requested the same length of sentence: five years, but with four years to be served and a fine of 1 million FCFA. However, the Court imposed a harsher sentence, rejecting the defendant’s pleas for clemency; he had begged for leniency, arguing that his actions were motivated by ignorance.