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The Federal High Court, first criminal bench, froze
properties belonging to six individuals accused of
cheating the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) of 158
million Br by passing off gilded bricks as solid
gold.
Based on the charge brought by the Federal Ethics
and Anti-Corruption Commission, the court on
December 31, 2007 banned the transfer to a third
party of any vehicles, residences, deposits or
precious metals belonging to the suspects.
The suspects are Mohammed Awel Seid (a.k.a. Mukemil
Sheriff), Kefyalew Umeta Jotte (a.k.a. Asmare Ayalew
and Mesfin Wolde), Mudesir Mohammed Sofam, Bahredin,
Nursebo Abdi, Mekdes Gebremichael Haile and Solomon
Gebremichael Haile.
The properties frozen include a residence in Kebele
05 of the Nifas Silk Lafto District under the
ownership of Bahredin, a commercial building in the
former Woreda 3, Kebele 52, and boutiques in Addis
Ketema and Arada Districts that belong to Sofam
Enterprise Plc.
The commission’s forensic investigator, Genzeb Semaw,
accused Mudesir and Bahredin of introducing Mohammed
and Kefyalew and facilitating their registration as
gold suppliers by using their friendships with
officials at the Bank.
Once registered, the suspects allegedly received
boxes used specifically for carrying precious metal
from officials of the NBE, claiming that they had
gold to supply. They allegedly later filled the box
with balestras and railroad steels gilded
with gold and sold it to the bank, making it look
like the contents had been validated by a
professional, according to the commission.
The Prosecution’s Allegations
The six individuals conspired to cheat the NBE of
158 million Br.
Two suspects used connections at the NBE to get two
other individuals registered as gold suppliers.
The phoney gold suppliers packed official NBE gold
boxes with gilded steel and forged authentication.
The other two individuals hid the currency from the
sale.
“With the assistance of employees of the Bank, they
have swindled 158 million Br,” reads the charge.
The commission accused Mekdes and Solomon of
collaborating with the other suspects by hiding the
currency from the transaction.
The Federal Police Commission earlier apprehended
four NBE employees and three Ethiopian Geological
Survey employees under orders from the Commission,
accusing them of cheating 96.5 million Br.
The police revealed that 29 boxes bought from
Kefyalew Umeta Import Export Trading were found to
contain phoney gold, and eventually apprehended
Ahmed Seid, Alemayehu Kassahun, Chimdesa Hirpa and
Fekadu Lulu from the NBE on December 7, 2007.
Earlier, the police had arrested experts at the
Geological Survey Laboratory - Sisay Engida,
Belachew Berissa and Yasin Yimam - who allegedly
certified the steel as gold.
The commission last week inspected the homes of
Mohammed Awel and Nursebo Abdi with a court warranty
and told the court that it found gold-looking pieces
of steel and other metals in one of the houses in
Nifas Silk Lafto District frozen by this week’s
court order. The two suspects have allegedly cheated
the bank of over 60 million Br.
The Auditor General last week began auditing the
Bank’s procurement procedures in response to the
scandal.
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