Koffi Olomidé, one of Africa’s most popular singers, has been found guilty of the statutory rape of one of his former dancers when she was 15.

He was handed a two-year suspended jail sentence by a court in France in absentia, as he failed to turn up.

The ruling means the Congolese star only faces arrest if he commits further offences.

Olomidé, 62, was ordered to pay 5,000 euros ($5,700; £4,300) in damages to the former dancer.

The court in Nanterre, outside Paris, also ordered him to pay a fine of the same amount for helping three women enter France illegally.

Olomidé’s lawyer has hailed the ruling as a victory, telling journalists it would result in the withdrawal of the star’s international arrest warrant.

Koffi Olomidé is a huge star of rumba and soukous which are popular across much of Africa.

Olomidé was first charged in 2012 with aggravated rape but the charges were reduced.

Four dancers who used to work for the musician told the court that he sexually assaulted them multiple times between 2002 and 2006. They said the assaults happened in the Democratic Republic of Congo and France.

(Source: BBC)