Goma (Congo), Mar 19 (AP) Congolese journalist Stanis Bujakera was set to be freed soon after a court sentenced him to six months in prison for spreading false information among other charges, according to media freedom group Reporters Without Borders.

He was expected to be released hours or days after the verdict, having already served more than six months while waiting for trial. A court in Kinshasa also fined him 1 million Congolese francs (USD 360).

Also Read | Nepal Road Accident: Eight Killed, 20 Injured After Passenger Bus Falls 200 Metres Off in Baglung District.

Bujakera worked for Actualité.CD, a Congolese online news site, and Jeune Afrique, a Paris-based magazine, among others.

Bujakera, who has denied all charges, had faced up to 20 years in prison. He was accused of fabricating a memo that implicated a Congolese intelligence official in the murder of an opposition spokesman.

Also Read | Israel-Hamas War: US President Joe Biden and Benjamin Netanyahu Hold First Call In More Than a Month As Tension Grows Over Food Crisis in Gaza.

"He should never have been arrested, prosecuted, imprisoned and convicted on the basis of a case that was clearly fabricated against him," Reporters without Borders said in a statement.

Actualité.CD said in a statement that it stood behind Bujakera's reporting and called on his lawyers to appeal the guilty verdict.

Bujakera's imprisonment drew widespread condemnation from international rights organisations. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)