Former South African President Jacob Zuma will be charged with 16 counts of corruption, money laundering and racketeering, the country’s national prosecuting authority announced Friday.
The charges relate to 783 questionable payments Zuma allegedly received in connection with a controversial multibillion-rand arms deal. On Friday, National Director of Public Prosecutions Shaun Abrahams said that there are “reasonable prospects of a successful prosecution” in Zuma’s case. The charges were previously dropped in 2009 just before Zuma was sworn in as President.
South African President Jacob Zuma was in office for nearly a decade. As head of the party that led South Africa out of apartheid, Zuma won elections in 2009 and 2014. But he has also been dogged by criminal investigations and corruption allegations. Dubbed the “Teflon” President, Zuma survived a half dozen no-confidence votes before finally resigning on February 14.