Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

Bahraini Cleric Accused of Money Laundering for Iraqi, Iranian Organizations | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Manama – Bahraini Public Prosecution accused the religious cleric running Islamic Awareness Society of committing legal offenses and funding organizations hostile to Bahrain in Iran and Iraq.

Investigations revealed that the cleric, whose name was not disclosed, opened an office for illegally gathering money. Public Prosecution also froze his 10 million dollars’ bank account.

Minister of Labor and Social Development Jamil Humaidan dissolved the Quran Care Society saying that it had committed several legal offenses. The association follows the law of social and cultural societies and clubs.

Under the minister’s decision, the society will be assigned a liquidator to liquidate it within four months. The minister asked the society’s management to hand over all records and documents related to the society. He also prevented any member or employee of the society from acting on behalf of the society unless stated by the liquidator.

The minister also banned the banks from disposing the society’s funds or properties. He stressed that the legal entity liquidating the society should do all that takes to keep its funds and present the Ministry of Labor and Social Development with a report about the liquidation.

In fact, the authorities, who are investigating several local societies, accused of money laundering and illegal fund-raising acts, had frozen his bank account.

Meanwhile, Chief Prosecutor Mohammed al-Maliki underlined in the statement that investigations were still being conducted in the case of illegal fundraising and money laundering by the Islamic Awareness Society.

On Wednesday, Public Prosecution revealed that a bank account belonging to a religious cleric included large sums of money. Maliki pointed out that investigations uncovered: “the religious figure, whose personal account included large sums of money, did not deposit all the funds he raised into the bank accounts. He kept them with him in a bid to evade security checks and banking controls on depositing and withdrawing money.”

Investigations so far revealed that some of the suspects had carried out banking transactions on the funds deposited in their bank accounts in breach of the law and regulations.