Court Adjourns Case of Accountant Accused of Embezzling Over BD 54,000

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com

The High Criminal Court has adjourned the case of a Bahraini man accused of embezzling over BD 54,000 belonging to Gulf Aviation Academy, to July 22nd. The adjournment was made to summon the accounting expert for further questioning.

During the hearing, the Public Prosecutor's representative requested the accounting expert's presence to discuss the report. Meanwhile, the defendant's lawyer, Fareed Ghazi, also requested to question the expert. The report highlighted a surplus of BD 60,000 with no corresponding balance, BD 54,000 with a balance, and BD 54,000 missing. The expert stated that they would like to discuss the fate of the BD 60,000 held in the bank account.

The accounting expert, appointed by the court, had previously reported that between January 2021 and April 2022, a missing amount was identified in the academy's bank accounts. This amount, totaling BD 52,714.811, was not deposited into the bank according to the academy's records.

The report also revealed the deletion of certain balances from the accounting system, the issuance of replacement balances for deleted ones, and the alteration of dates for some balances. Additionally, the cancellation of a value-added tax entry recorded on March 31st, 2022, was discovered.

The case was reported to the Financial Crimes and Money Laundering Prosecution received by the General Directorate of Anti-corruption and Economic and Electronic Security based on a complaint filed by the Gulf Aviation Academy. The complaint arose from an audit and inspection that revealed suspected criminal activity by the employee (defendant) during and due to his job. The alleged crime involved the embezzlement of trainee funds collected for the benefit of his employer.

The prosecution conducted an investigation by listening to witness statements from academy officials and specialists, examining documents and technical reports, and questioning the report preparers.

This process confirmed the defendant's involvement in the embezzlement of BD 54,000 from trainee funds collected for his employer's account. He also manipulated data and information in his employer's electronic system to conceal his crime and erase evidence.