Myanmar: Nobel Laureate Suu Kyi Awaits Verdict In First Corruption Case, May Face 15 Years In Prison

Nobel laureate Suu Kyi faces charges with offences starting from incitement and graft to violations of electoral and state secrets laws

Suu Kyi, who faces a possible 15 years in prison, was thrown out of power in a coup last year.

New Delhi: A court in Myanmar is expected to deliver the first verdict on Monday against ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi involved in multiple corruption cases.

Suu Kyi, who faces a possible 15 years in prison, was thrown out of power in a coup last year. Nobel laureate Suu Kyi faces charges with offences starting from incitement and graft to violations of electoral and state secrets laws. All these charges carry a combined maximum sentence of more than 150 years, according to a report by Reuters.

Earlier, also the Nobel laureate was found guilty of two lesser offences and sentenced to six years in a series of trials that could last years. These trials leave little scope for any political comeback for Suu Kyi who has been spearheading the country's struggle against dictatorship.

What’s expected in the trial?

Going by the source of the trial, the judge will take a call on charges that Suu Kyi accepted bribes totalling $600,000 and 11.4 kg of gold from Phyo Min Thein, a former Yangon chief minister.  Thein was then seen as her future successor.

In October, a protege of Suu Kyi Phyo Min Thein has testified to giving money and gold to her in exchange for her support. Suu Kyi has dismissed these allegations, which the junta aired separately on national television, as "absurd."

Suu Kyi, 76, is held in an undisclosed location, without visitors. She denies all charges.

The military has restricted information about her trial and imposed a gag order on her lawyers. The international community calls the trial a farce.