Gabon's President Omar Bongo Ondimba during a press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris. Omar Bongo was condemned by the Bordeaux courthouse to pay 457,347.05 euros to the son of a French businessman who had to pay the same amount of money to have his father released from Libreville, it was announced 22 June 2007. According to French newspaper Sud Ouest, Rene Cardona was associated with "the Gabonese Head of State and his family" in an arms and fishing company when he was imprisonned in 1996, following a discord. The French entrepreneur was only liberated after his son transferred "300 millions de francs CFA (457,347.05 euros) to the personnal bank account of the Gabonese strongman". AFP PHOTO / PATRICK KOVARIK (Photo credit should read PATRICK KOVARIK/AFP/Getty Images)