It was a family affair Obiang’s father, Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, seized power from his uncle in a 1979 coup and has ruled continuously ever since. Soon after, Obiang entered the Equatorial Guinean government. He rarely attended class, the paper said, and he was eventually asked to leave the program early. He reportedly went to a private high school in Normandy, in France, then took English language classes at Pepperdine University, where he traveled around in a limousine and holed up at a rental house in Malibu and at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, according to a 2007 report in the university’s newspaper. Obiang’s penchant for fancy things started young. On Friday morning he posted a pair of photos to his Instagram page, perched on the edge of a luxury armchair and grinning in a bright crimson blazer. The government of Equatorial Guinea did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did Obiang in a message to his personal Instagram account, though he has previously denied wrongdoing. Oligarch Son to Pay Mom $100 Million in World’s Most Expensive Divorce Battle “Corruption drains the wealth of poorer nations, keeps their people trapped in poverty, and poisons the well of democracy.” “The action we have taken today targets individuals who have lined their own pockets at the expense of their citizens,” said foreign minister Dominic Raab in a statement. As part of the sanctions, Obiang’s assets will be frozen and he will be banned from entering the U.K. This week, the British government sanctioned Obiang over accusations of rampant graft, amid claims that he has improperly spent over $500 million since he became a government minister in 1998. He reportedly has indulged himself with a $100 million mansion in Paris, a $38 million jet, Ferraris, Aston Martins, and a host of Michael Jackson memorabilia, including a “$275,000 crystal-covered glove that Jackson wore on his ‘Bad’ tour.”Īnti-corruption investigators say his profligate spending has been financed with government funds-and it has to stop. The African nation’s vice president-who is the son of the current president-regales his 116,000 Instagram followers with images from his high-flying lifestyle: a ride on a water jetpack, a spin in an F1 race car, a trip to Carnaval. Three-fourths of the people in Equatorial Guinea have no internet access, but Teodoro Obiang Mangue isn’t one of them. Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast/Photo via Getty