- Riad Salameh under scrutiny
- Germany issues warrant
- Alleged money laundering investigated
Prosecutors in Germany have issued an arrest warrant for the former head of the central bank of Lebanon and verified they are conducting an investigation into allegations of money laundering and other illicit activities.
The investigation includes Riad Salameh, the former governor of Lebanon’s central bank from 1993 to 2023, his brother Raja, and additional suspects, the Munich public prosecutor’s office confirmed on Tuesday, according to Reuters.
The prosecutor’s office stated that Salameh and the other suspects are under investigation on charges including money laundering, embezzlement, and forgery.
The charges have been refuted by the brothers.
In addition to at least five European countries, Salameh, 73, is under investigation in Lebanon for allegedly laundering hundreds of millions of dollars from the central bank of Lebanon to another country, all while depriving the Lebanese government of the proceeds.
The public prosecutor’s office in Munich stated that a portion of the money was invested in real estate, including in Germany, after being transmitted to Europe through a letterbox company in the British Virgin Islands.
The prosecutor’s office stated that three commercial properties in Munich and Hamburg were seized. These properties, valued at approximately 28 million euros ($30.3 million), were seized in collaboration with French and Luxembourg partner authorities.
In addition, approximately 7 million euros ($7.5 million) value of shares in a property company based in Dusseldorf were secured.
Previous year, France issued an arrest warrant and Interpol a red notice for Salameh.
Alleged Offences
The 30-year tenure of Salameh as the head of the central bank expired in July.
He became governor in 1993, three years after Lebanon’s fifteen-year civil war. Salameh’s role in Lebanon’s reconstruction was widely praised during this time of abundant reconstruction funding and aid.
However, he tendered his resignation while being sought after in Europe. He was widely held accountable in Lebanon for the nation’s financial crisis, which commenced in the middle of 2019.
“Unlock your financial potential with free Webull shares in the UK.”
Numerous financial experts regarded him as the mastermind behind a collapsed financial system. The depletion of Lebanon’s currency supply and decades of governing party incompetence and corruption caused this catastrophe.
The crisis destroyed the Lebanese pound and many Lebanese savings as institutions ran out of actual currency.
Salameh, on the other hand, has asserted that his wealth is the result of inherited properties and investments, his former position as an investment banker at Merrill Lynch, and his steadfast denial of the allegations against him.
