The security services arrested 15 customs officers implicated in a case of attempted embezzlement of 1 million and 250,000 euros which they seized in the wilaya of Oum El Bouaghi. This was indicated by the public prosecutor at the court of Aïn M’lila, who specifies that the investigation is still ongoing.
During a lively press conference on Thursday, April 29, the public prosecutor at the court of Aïn M’lila indicated that the facts dated back to March 16, 2021 (around 6:30 a.m.), when the regional anti-smuggling team, under the customs of the wilaya of Tébessa, intercepted a Renault Fluence car after having installed a roadblock on the national road n ° 3 connecting Aïn M’lila and Batna.
Following the search of the vehicle in question, the customs services discovered a large sum of money in euros. The driver did not present any document proving the lawful possession of this large sum. The same source pointed out that after the end of their intervention, the customs personnel had moved to the jurisdiction of the court of El Aouinet, in the wilaya of Tébessa, without informing the territorially competent public prosecutor, namely that of the court of Aïn M’lila.
Customs officers give false information
At the El Aouinet court, customs officials provided the prosecutor with inaccurate details, indicating that the facts had taken place under his jurisdiction. They informed him that they had seized a tourist car and an amount of 250,000 euros and that the driver had escaped to an unknown destination.
After being kept informed, the prosecutor of the court of Aïn M’lila ordered the opening of an investigation. The first results of the investigations revealed that the scenario was fabricated from scratch by the elements of the customs, in particular as regards the place of the facts. A finding established after the use of surveillance cameras installed at the service station located on the road connecting Aïn M’lila ( Oum El Bouaghi ) to the wilaya of Tébessa.
Based on the initial results of the investigation, the gendarmerie services arrested 15 Customs employees, aged between 28 and 62, all suspected of being involved in this affair. Large sums in foreign currency: 50,000 euros, 170,000 euros and 79,000 euros were recovered. According to the suspects, the total amount seized amounts to 1 million and 250,000 euros.
Placed in pre-trial detention, the accused will soon be presented before the investigating judge of the court of Aïn M’lila. In the meantime, the investigation is still ongoing to shed light on this matter.
