Ouagadougou: The manager of the real estate company Traor et Frres (SITRAF), former Minister of Education Lionel Bilgo and the company's executive director, Kabor Vincent de Paul, placed under arrest warrant on August 28, 2026, face up to 10 years in prison for illegally carrying out land development activities and advertising real estate development activities without prior authorization, announced the prosecutor of Faso at the High Court of Bobo-Dioulasso.According to Burkina Information Agency, the case began on August 19, 2026, when the central police station in Bobo-Dioulasso was informed that SITRAF was selling and advertising the sale of bare plots without authorization.An investigation was then opened. It led to the identification of three sites belonging to the company, two located in Lguma, covering a total area of 197 hectares, and a third in Lgfourousso, covering 16 hectares. Construction sites were underway at these various locations, the prosecutor's office stated.A search of the company's headquarters allowed investigators to seize several documents, including land allocation certificates. The company's top officials were also arrested.When questioned, the two executives acknowledged that SITRAF held a permit, issued on January 12, 2026, authorizing it to build a housing complex on each of the three sites. According to the prosecutor's office, however, this permit did not authorize it to subdivide the land for the purpose of selling undeveloped plots, nor to advertise such sales.Several people have also stated that they purchased undeveloped plots of land from the company. The exact number of plots involved remains to be determined, according to the prosecutor.Following the investigation, the alleged facts were deemed substantiated. The two executives were prosecuted and remanded in custody on August 28, 2026. SITRAF, as a company, is also facing prosecution for the same offenses.The prosecutor reminds that the offences in question are punishable by sentences ranging from six months to ten years imprisonment, as well as fines ranging from 100 million FCFA per hectare of developed land and twice the amount of the plots sold.The case will be heard at the Bobo-Dioulasso High Court hearing scheduled for September 4, 2026.The prosecutor's office invites anyone with useful information to come forward and calls on the public to be more vigilant and to respect the provisions of Law No. 2023-008/ALT of June 20, 2023 concerning real estate development in Burkina Faso.