SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Eike Batista, the mining and oil magnate who was once Brazil's richest man, was convicted and sentenced to 30 years in prison for bribing Rio de Janeiro state's disgraced former governor, according to a court document published on Tuesday.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Batista's conviction and sentencing are the latest in Brazil's wave of graft investigations, which have sent scores of powerful businessmen and politicians to jail.
Batista, whose legal team said he would appeal, was found guilty of paying a $16.5 million bribe to former Rio governor Sergio Cabral, who also was found guilty in the case. In exchange for the bribe, Batista's companies won contracts with the state.
It was the sixth conviction for Cabral, who is jailed and has been sentenced in his numerous cases to more than 120 years for an array of corruption charges.
Six years ago, Batista, 61, had a net worth exceeding $30 billion (22.8 billion pounds) and ranked among the world's 10 richest people, according to Forbes.
(Reporting by Brad Brooks; Editing by Bill Trott)