Pretoria, South Africa
The ex-wife of former South African president Nelson Mandela doesn’t have to go to jail, an appeals court ruled this week. The court overturned Winnie Madikizela-Mandela’s conviction for theft, and while it upheld convictions for other fraud counts, it issued only a suspended sentence, saying the crimes were “not committed for personal gain.” Madikizela-Mandela helped arrange fraudulent bank loans, the court said, but did not pocket the money. It wasn’t the first time Madikizela-Mandela had been convicted of a crime but escaped prison. In 1991, she was sentenced to six years for kidnapping a 14-year-old boy who was later murdered by her bodyguards, but that sentence was reduced to a fine on appeal.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Democrats: The 2028 race has begunFeature Democratic primaries have already kicked off in South Carolina
-
The Pentagon's missing missilesFeature The U.S. military is low on weapons. Can it restock before a major conflict breaks out?
-
Rescissions: Trump's push to control federal spendingFeature The GOP passed a bill to reduce funding for PBS, NPR and other public media stations
