Myanmar Court Sentences Ousted Leader Suu Kyi to Five Years in Jail for Corruption

Since last year's February military coup, Aung San Suu Kyi has remained under detention and faced a dozen criminal charges, ranging from election fraud and corruption to violating COVID-19 protocols.

A Myanmar court on Wednesday delivered a ruling in the first of a dozen cases related to corruption against 76-year-old leader Aung San Suu Kyi, whose government was ousted by a military junta last February.

This case relates to former Yangon chief minister Phyo Min Thein, who said he bribed Suu Kyi with cash and gold bars valued at $600,000.

The court has sentenced the Nobel peace prize winner to five years in prison.

Local media reports that lawyers didn't allow them to meet Suu Kyi, who has remained detained since a military coup last February and faces about a dozen charges, all of which she denies.

She faces criminal charges, including for her alleged violation of the official secrets act, corruption and electoral fraud.

The Wednesday's sentence brings her prison term so far to 11 years. The court will pronounce verdicts in 10 more corruption cases after completing the trials.

In December, a court had found her guilty of inciting dissent and breaking COVID-19 protocols, for which she received two years in jail. UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet condemned the order as a "sham trial".

In January, a court sentenced the Nobel Laureate to a four-year jail term for possessing walkie-talkies illegally.

The Myanmar military had ousted Suu Kyi from power after her party, the National League for Democracy, secured a landslide victory in the November 2020 General Election.

According to a local monitoring group, more than 13,000 people have been arrested or detained under different charges since a military coup ousted the civilian government.