Bank Employee Receives Stiff Sentence for Embezzlement and Money Laundering
TDT | Manama
Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com
A 39-year-old Bahraini customer service coordinator has been sentenced to five years imprisonment and fined BD105,000 for embezzlement and money laundering. The court also ordered the confiscation of BD35,283 in assets. The defendant was found guilty of stealing over BD35,000 from client accounts between March 2023 and April 2024 while working at a local bank.
The court heard that the defendant transferred BD35,283 from the accounts of a prominent company and another client to the accounts of his wife and cousin. The funds were subsequently returned to the defendant's accounts in tranches. He then used the money for various purchases, payments, and transfers totaling BD15,093.519. Further transactions included bank transfers of BD9,199.635, cash withdrawals of BD240, and payments of BD761.500.
The prosecution argued that these transactions were designed to conceal the origin of the funds and make them appear legitimate, thus constituting money laundering. The defendant was also found guilty of using a branch supervisor's electronic signature and internal transfer codes without their knowledge or consent to carry out the fraudulent transactions.
The investigation revealed ten transfers to the defendant's wife from a client's account, followed by the return of the funds to the defendant's account. Similar transactions were identified involving the defendant's cousin and the company's account.
The defendant's cousin stated that the defendant had instructed him to receive and return the money, claiming ownership. The defendant's wife stated she was unaware of the funds' origin, believing them to be bonuses related to a new bank system.
A police officer testified that the investigation included analysis of bank accounts, text message exchanges, and interviews with the defendant, his wife, and cousin. The defendant confessed to embezzling the funds and transferring them to his wife and cousin's accounts without their knowledge of the true source. Most of the money transferred to his wife's account was subsequently returned to the defendant.
The case concluded with the defendant's sentencing, substantial fine, and the order for asset confiscation, reflecting the severity of the crimes committed.
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