Lebanese judge calls c.bank governor for questioning

A man uses an ATM outside a closed bank in Beirut on Monday. (AP)

• Judge Nicolas Mansour also ordered Salameh's brother, Raja to remain in custody
• The charges against the Salameh brothers were brought by Judge Ghada Aoun

BEIRUT: A Lebanese judge on Thursday summoned central governor Riad Salameh to appear for questioning on March 31 after he was charged with illicit enrichment, the Lebanese state news agency (NNA) reported on Thursday.
Judge Nicolas Mansour also ordered Salameh’s brother, Raja to remain in custody following his detention a week ago when he was charged with complicity in the same case, a judicial source and the NNA said.
The charges against the Salameh brothers were brought by Judge Ghada Aoun, who referred the case to investigating Judge Mansour earlier this week. Aoun told Reuters on Monday that the case pertained to the purchase and rental of Paris apartments, including some to the central bank.
Salameh, governor for nearly three decades, denied the charge when contacted by Reuters on Monday, saying he had ordered an audit which showed public funds were not a source of his wealth.
He was not present when Aoun charged him on Monday and has not been detained. Salameh did not immediately reply to a question from Reuters on Thursday about whether he had received a summons or whether he would attend the hearing.
Salameh’s tenure as central bank governor has faced increased scrutiny since the financial system imploded in 2019, the most destabilising crisis since Lebanon’s 1975-90 civil war.
A lawyer for Raja Salameh has previously said the charge against his client is unfounded. The lawyer could not immediately be reached for comment on Thursday.
At a hearing on Thursday, Judge Mansour ordered Raja Salameh remain in detention, pending the provision of documents that show the source of funds used to buy the properties under investigation, the judicial source said.
Riad Salameh’s wealth is being investigated by authorities in at least five European countries. A Swiss inquiry is probing alleged aggravated money laundering at the central bank involving $300 million in gains by a company owned by Raja Salameh.
Denying wrongdoing, Riad Salameh said last year that he had ordered an audit that had shown no public funds were used to pay fees and commissions to the company owned by his brother.
Critics of Judge Aoun accuse her of acting in line with the political agenda of President Michel Aoun, who appointed her as a prosecutor and whose Free Patriotic Movement wants Salameh removed from his post.
Judge Aoun denies this, saying she is applying the law.
Riad Salameh still has powerful backers in the Lebanese government, including Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
Mikati on Wednesday proposed inviting the central bank governor to a forthcoming cabinet session, in an apparent show of support.