Karim Wade, a former senior minister in the Senegal government has been sentenced to six years in prison for corruption.

He is the son of the former president Abdoulaye Wade and had just been chosen by the opposition Senegalese Democratic Party as its presidential candidate.

He was not present in court and his father left amid protests without commenting on the verdict which includes a fine of around 160 million euros. His lawyer says he will appeal the sentence.

“The government wants to kill Abdoulaye Wade and he doesn’t deserve it. He did everything for this country and look what they are doing to his son. The verdict is wrong,” said one Wade supporter who was demonstrating outside the court.

Karim Wade was detained in April 2013 and accused of illegally amassing about 1.3 billion euros but was cleared of some of the charges.

The judge said he had hidden funds in offshore companies in the British Virgin Islands and Panama.

Wade claims he was the subject of a political wit