A Moroccan court handed prison sentences to 29 people, including prominent politicians and sports and business figures, in an international drug trafficking and corruption scandal that has rocked the country.

The court also ordered the defendants to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in fines late on Thursday after a trial that lasted more than two years.

The case began when an imprisoned drug kingpin dubbed “Sahara’s Pablo Escobar,” in reference to the notorious Colombian trafficker, alleged that some of his business associates, including senior Moroccan politicians, were involved in drug trafficking and seized his assets while he was in prison.

Those accused have denied the allegations.

• An AP report