A court in Pakistan has sentenced former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is currently in prison, to 14 years in prison, while his wife was sentenced to seven years, after finding them guilty of corruption, according to officials and their lawyers.
The couple was accused of accepting a gift of land from a real estate tycoon in exchange for laundering money while Khan was in power.
Prosecutors stated that the businessman, Malik Riaz, was later allowed by Khan to pay fines imposed on him in another case using the same laundered money of £190 million ($240 million). This money was returned to Pakistan by British authorities in 2022 to be deposited in the state treasury.
Khan has denied the charges and has insisted since his arrest in 2023 that all accusations against him are part of a plot by his rivals to prevent him from running for office again.
Khan, who became Prime Minister in 2018, was ousted from power through a vote of no confidence in Parliament in April 2022.
He has previously been sentenced on charges of corruption, revealing state secrets, and violating marriage laws, with three separate sentences of ten, 14, and seven years, respectively.
Under Pakistani law, Khan must serve all his sentences, meaning the duration of his imprisonment will be longer.
At 72, Khan faces over 150 criminal cases, although he enjoys significant popularity among Pakistanis.
He and his political party, Pakistan Tehrik-e Insaf (PTI), have claimed that these cases are politically motivated.
