BEIRUT/PARIS: French prosecutors have told Lebanon’s central bank governor Riad Salameh they plan to press preliminary fraud and money laundering charges against him, partly based on allegedly forged bank statements used to conceal his wealth, according to French court documents seen by Reuters.
The accusation of using fake account statements, which had not previously been reported, is contained in documents sent to Salameh by French judicial authorities ahead of a planned hearing in France on May 16.
During that hearing, French prosecutors intend to press the preliminary charges and formally name him a suspect.
Salameh declined to comment on his alleged use of fake documents. He has repeatedly denied accusations of fraud and money laundering, saying he is being made a scapegoat for Lebanon’s financial crisis that erupted in 2019.
A lawyer for Salameh said earlier this month that his client had not yet decided if he would travel to France to attend the May 16 hearing.
As part of a joint investigation with counterparts in Lebanon and at least four other European countries, French prosecutors suspect Salameh, 72, colluded with his brother Raja to divert more than $300 million in public funds, some of which was used to buy properties across Europe.
Riad and Raja Salameh have denied diverting public funds.
French and other European investigators, who questioned Salameh in Beirut last month, suspect the bulk of the governor’s fortune stems from the public funds he allegedly diverted.
As part of his response to accusations, Salameh sent French prosecutors a 65-page memo supplied by Marwan Kheireddine, the chairman of Lebanon’s AM Bank.
The document seen by Reuters contains series of bank statements which, according to one of Salameh’s lawyers, show how the governor’s savings rose from $15 million in 1993 to more than $150 million by 2019 “as he capitalized interests.”
But according to the French court documents seen by Reuters, French investigators have reached the conclusion the bank statements were fake.
Salameh “used fake records of bank accounts at AM Bank… provided by Marwan Kheireddine, to justify in a deceitful manner the origin of his properties or revenues,” French prosecutors say in the court documents.
Kheireddine’s lawyer, Thierry Marembert, said his client denied wrongdoing.
Following Salameh’s questioning in Beirut, French prosecutors wrote that “Riad Salameh is not able to justify the different loans and investments that allowed him to increase his wealth by more than 250 million euros (at a minimum) during this period,” according to the French court documents.
Salameh has said his fortune came from the sound management of savings he amassed during his career as an investment banker.
Kheireddine was questioned in France earlier this month on suspicion of participation in a criminal association and aggravated money laundering. The banker was told not to leave the country and his passport was confiscated.
French prosecutors accuse Lebanon central bank chief of hiding fraud
https://arab.news/yh9t5
French prosecutors accuse Lebanon central bank chief of hiding fraud
- French prosecutors intend to press the preliminary charges and formally name Riad Salameh a suspect
- He has repeatedly denied accusations of fraud and money laundering
UN warns of abuse of Palestinians returning to Gaza through Rafah crossing
- Human Rights Office describes pattern of ill-treatment, abuse and humiliation of returnees by Israeli forces, and by armed Palestinians allegedly backed by Israeli military
- Meanwhile, reports continue of airstrikes, gunfire and shelling across Gaza, and Israeli forces demolish a UN-run school
NEW YORK CITY: The Rafah crossing on the border between Gaza and Egypt opened for a fourth consecutive day on Thursday, allowing a limited number of people to pass through.
However, the UN voiced concerns about reported mistreatment of Palestinians returning to the war-ravaged enclave.
The UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs also said reports continue across civilian areas in Gaza of airstrikes, gunfire and shelling, resulting in casualties and damage to infrastructure.
And Israeli forces on Wednesday demolished Jabalya Preparatory Boys’ School in northern Gaza, OCHA said. Run by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, it was the last remaining school in a compound of six. Its destruction means the entire educational complex has been razed to the ground.
A limited flow of people were allowed to use the Rafah crossing, Gaza’s main physical connection to the outside world, for four days in a row since it reopened on Monday, OCHA said. Only 98 returnees were received by UN teams inside Gaza between Monday and Thursday, it added, and the crossing remains closed on Fridays.
The UN Human Rights Office warned of what it described as a pattern of ill-treatment, abuse and humiliation of returnees by Israeli forces, and by armed Palestinians allegedly backed by the Israeli military.
According to accounts collected by the UN’s Human Rights Office, armed Palestinians handcuffed and blindfolded returnees, threatened and intimidated them, conducted searches and stole personal belongings and money. Returnees also reported violence, degrading interrogations and invasive body searches upon arrival at Israeli checkpoints.
The accounts point to conduct that violates the rights of Palestinians to personal security and dignity, and freedom from torture and other ill-treatment, the Human Rights Office said.
Meanwhile, the UN said it attempted to coordinate 11 humanitarian missions with the Israeli authorities on Wednesday and Thursday. Six were fully facilitated, but four faced lengthy delays at holding points along designated routes. Two of those missions were only partially completed, the other two eventually went ahead despite the delays.
A mission to monitor humanitarian cargo at the Kissufim crossing, east of Khan Younis, was denied on Wednesday after the crossing was closed.
The purposes of the missions included the collection of water, sanitation supplies, fuel and other items, medical evacuations through the Rafah crossing, and the transportation of returnees to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, OCHA said.
