Supreme Court Overturns $11 Million Fraud Verdict Against French Investor’s Heirs in Morocco

The "Sahrawi" businessman is not done with justice. In its ruling 238/6/12/2021, the Court of Cassation accepted the annulment of the charge of fraud, upheld on appeal against the defendants, and ordered that the case be referred back to that jurisdiction for a new examination.

A decision that should not delight the Moroccan investor, whose empire risks collapsing under the debts. The company of the former deputy, also being prosecuted in a case of municipal management, had accumulated no less than 500 million dirhams in debt, in addition to the 300 million claimed by banks and the social security fund.

Despite the mediation attempts initiated by former statesmen, the case had been brought before the courts, in the absence of an amicable settlement. Hassan Derham accused his former partner, a Franco-Algerian, of embezzlement. The latter would have used the Moroccan’s reputation to make several transfers to accounts abroad.