Moroccan Lawmaker Gets 4-Year Sentence for Public Funds Embezzlement

The accused, who is also a PAM deputy, was prosecuted for misappropriation of public funds, fraud and forgery. The court also sentenced three entrepreneurs involved in this case to 18 months in prison each. The judicial police had investigated irregularities that had tarnished the credibility of certain projects, as well as the falsification of minutes by the head of the aforementioned commune, reports Al Massae.

After investigation, the judicial police referred the accused to the Attorney General of the King near the Court of Appeal of Casablanca, before the investigating judge ordered them to be placed in pre-trial detention in the Oukacha prison. This case came to light when the National Authority for the Protection of Public Property, in the Casablanca-Settat region, filed a complaint with the Attorney General of the King based on testimony from elected officials confirming the existence of financial embezzlement, falsification of minutes and misappropriation of public funds.

In addition to the charges related to the misappropriation of public money and the falsification of the minutes of the October 2017 session, the accused would have launched fictitious tenders and allocated the corresponding budget credits.