By Paresh Dave

OAKLAND, Calif. (Reuters) – A former Twitter Inc manager convicted of spying for Saudi Arabia was sentenced to 3-1/2 years in U.S. prison, prosecutors said on Wednesday.

Ahmad Abouammo had been found guilty by a jury in August following a trial in San Francisco federal court. He had faced a 10-year prison sentence on one count and 20-year sentences each on several other charges.

Starting as early as 2014, Abouammo accepted bribes from Saudi officials, prosecutors said. At Twitter, he helped oversee relationships with journalists and celebrities in the Middle East and North Africa. He was convicted of conveying sensitive information from the company's systems to help Saudi officials identify and locate Twitter users of interest.

Federal public defenders representing Abouammo did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Twitter, recently taken over by Elon Musk, also did not immediately respond to request for comment.

(Reporting by Paresh Dave; Editing by Chris Reese)

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