Moroccan Bank Director Gets 4 Years for Embezzlement and Forgery

Found guilty of embezzlement and forgery and use of forgery, the director of a Crédit Agricole agency located in the town of Had Kourt, in the province of Sidi Kacem, was sentenced to four years in prison by the Chamber in charge of financial crimes at the Court of Appeal of Rabat, reports the daily Al Akhbar. He had been sentenced to three years in prison at first instance. The judge explains this upward revision of the prison term by the seriousness of the facts.

The manager’s legal troubles began in 2019, following an audit commissioned by the bank’s central management. The inspection commission discovered a series of management irregularities and embezzlements, as well as cases of forgery and use of forgery in the bank’s records. For example: false credit files were opened and loans were granted to certain people without respecting the usual procedures. These practices contrary to financial orthodoxy have consequently resulted in major losses for the bank.