|By Arabian Post Staff| An estimated $100 billion has been involved in the systematic corruption and embezzlement |that plagued Saudi Arabia over several decades, Saud Al Mojeb, the kingdom’s Attorney General and member of the Supreme Anti-Corruption Committee, announced.
The disclosure came in a statement on the status of the anti-corruption proceedings, which are moving forward There is strong evidence that confirms initial suspicions, which led Saudi Arabian authorities to initiate a deeper investigation with the suspects, it said.
So far, a total of 208 individuals have been called in for questioning. Within this group of 208 individuals, seven have been released without charge. Given the magnitude of the allegations, Saudi Arabian authorities, under the Royal Order directive, has a clear, legal mandate to move to the next phase of the investigations and suspend personal bank accounts, the statement said.
The Governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority, (SAMA )has agreed to the request to suspend the personal bank accounts, not the business accounts, of the persons of interests in the investigation.
There has been a great deal of speculation around the world regarding the identities of the concerned individuals, as well as, the details around charges brought against them. In order to ensure that the individuals continue to be afforded the full legal rights granted to them under Saudi law, any more personal details will not be revealed at this time, the authorities said. This is being done to protect the privacy of the involved persons, they added.
The authorities asserted that normal commercial activity in the country is not affected by these investigations. Only personal bank accounts have been suspended. Companies and banks are free to continue with transactions in line with business as usual.
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