Nour Zuhair ignores his trial.. Arrest warrant pursues the “godfather of the theft of the century” a

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[size=52]Nour Zuhair ignores his trial.. Arrest warrant pursues the “godfather of the theft of the century” and the mystery of the tax deposits remains unsolved[/size]

[size=45]Nour Zuhair, the first accused of stealing tax deposits in Iraq, was scheduled to appear at the Central Criminal Court in Baghdad for trial today, Tuesday, but he did not show up, which prompted the Anti-Corruption Criminal Court to issue an arrest warrant against him. A few minutes later, another arrest warrant was issued against Haitham Al-Jubouri, the second accused of stealing tax deposits, which was known in the media as the “theft of the century.”[/size]
[size=45]The mystery surrounding the case of the main suspect in the “theft of the century” increased after news emerged that he was injured in an “alleged” traffic accident in Beirut, while Lebanese sources revealed information about his entry and exit from the country within 3 days, without a judicial notice against him at “Rafik Hariri Airport.”[/size]
[size=45]Lebanese media reported at dawn on Saturday that "Iraqi businessman Nour Zuhair Al-Muzfar barely survived a traffic accident in the Al-Hadath area," a suburb of Beirut.[/size]
[size=45]Zuhair is the most prominent defendant in the case of seizing $2.5 billion in “tax trust” funds, in one of the largest financial corruption scandals in the country.
The money was withdrawn between September 2021 and August 2022 through 247 checks that were cashed by 5 companies, then withdrawn in cash from the accounts of these companies, and most of their owners fled the country, according to Iraqi investigations that began in 2022 and are still ongoing.[/size]
[size=45]News of the incident sparked widespread controversy on social media, with journalists and activists describing Zuhair’s injury as “fake.” MP Sarwa Abdul Wahid said in a post on “X” that “the incident was a failed play.”[/size]
[size=45]Later on Saturday morning, Lebanese media outlets deleted what they had published about the traffic accident in Al-Hadath.[/size]
[size=45]Zuhair in "Saint Therese"[/size]
[size=45]Lebanese sources said that "an Iraqi named Nour Zuhair Al-Muzaffar actually arrived at Saint Therese Hospital on the outskirts of Beirut's southern suburbs, and he had minor bruises."[/size]
[size=45]Lebanese law requires hospitals to notify security authorities when any person injured in a traffic accident arrives, but Saint Therese Hospital did not do so because “the patient’s (Iraqi) condition did not require it,” according to the sources.[/size]
[size=45]In turn, a senior official in the Lebanese Internal Security Forces confirmed that “the police stations in Beirut and the nearby suburbs were not informed of any traffic accident involving an Iraqi citizen named Nour Zuhair.”[/size]
[size=45]The Lebanese official confirmed that "the security forces asked Saint Therese Hospital about the reason for not reporting it, and it stated that the aforementioned person had indeed arrived, but his injury was very minor and did not require reporting it to the Lebanese security, or giving him a medical report about the traffic accident."[/size]
[size=45]However, MP Sarwa Abdul Wahid said that an investigation was opened with a doctor at the hospital who gave Zuhair a forged medical report.[/size]
[size=45]How did Zuhair enter Beirut?[/size]
[size=45]Before the alleged incident, Zuhair appeared on a television interview to talk about his case, and claimed that he was “innocent of stealing tax funds.”[/size]
[size=45]During the interview, Zuhair confirmed that he “will attend his trial session in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on August 27,” and threatened to “expose names and details of corruption cases.”
Although the television broadcast did not indicate where the interview was held, there were widespread allegations on social media that he resides outside Iraq.[/size]
[size=45]With the circulation of pictures of Zuhair injured in a traffic accident in Beirut, activists wondered about his “ability to move between different capitals, even though he is the main accused in the theft of the century case.”[/size]
[size=45]According to sources in the Lebanese General Security, Zuhair “arrived in Beirut on August 21 (Wednesday) via a private plane, and left from Rafic Hariri International Airport last Friday heading to Turkey.”[/size]
[size=45]No judicial notice at airports[/size]
[size=45]Lebanese media confirmed that “there was no judicial indication that required his arrest at Rafik Hariri Airport,” which an Iraqi judicial official explained as “he enjoys bail from the Iraqi judiciary.”[/size]
[size=45]Lebanese security sources reported that “Zuhair holds a Jordanian passport and an Iraqi diplomatic passport, and he visits Lebanon frequently.”[/size]
[size=45]Imprisonment 7-10 years[/size]
[size=45]For his part, Iraqi legal researcher Ali Al-Tamimi said that if the accused in the so-called “deal of the century,” Nour Zuhair, continues to be absent without a convincing excuse for the court, his bail must be lifted and an arrest warrant issued against him, indicating that Zuhair’s crime (stealing state funds) and its penalty under Iraqi law stipulates a 7-year prison sentence that can be increased to 10 years.
Al-Tamimi said in a legal opinion titled “What after the postponement of Nour Zuhair’s trial?” that “Article 162 of the Iraqi Code of Criminal Procedure allows the postponement of pleadings for certain reasons and circumstances for an appropriate period and the re-notification of all parties.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Tamimi continued: “If the accused is not brought in the upcoming sessions and the court is not convinced by the excuses presented, the guarantor must pay the full bail amount or in installments. In the event that the guarantor accused is not brought in and the bail amount is not paid, the criminal court can cancel the bail and imprison the guarantor for a period not exceeding 6 months, and issue an arrest warrant for the fugitive accused, as stated in Article 119/B of the Criminal Procedure Code.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, “If we reach this stage, the in-person trial will turn into an in absentia trial, as stated in Articles 143 and 243 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, and the court will issue its decision in absentia. If the accused does not surrender himself within 6 months, the in-person trial will turn into a trial in readiness. However, if he surrenders himself within this 6-month period, the trial will be repeated in absentia.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Tamimi explained that “the accusation against the accused Nour Zuhair is Article 444/11 of the Penal Code, stealing state funds, and its penalty is 7 years in prison, which can be increased to 10 years in prison,” stressing that “it was possible to initially prevent the accused from traveling and seize his funds according to Article 121 of the Criminal Procedure Code, to ensure that he does not flee the country.”[/size]
[size=45]The mystery of the “theft of the century”[/size]
[size=45]Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani pledged to make eliminating corruption a top priority when he takes office in late October, but many believe the government is facing the most complex corruption file, due to its complex parties and attempts to exploit it politically.[/size]
[size=45]The Integrity Commission issued arrest warrants and conducted investigations over the course of two years with dozens of individuals and entities concerned with tax funds. However, the course of the investigation and statements issued by oversight bodies suggest that the amount of the theft previously announced has been doubled, and may have reached about 11 trillion dinars (about 8 billion dollars).[/size]
[size=45]In an indication that the Integrity Commission does not know the total amount stolen, its chairman, Haider Hanoun, asked the Tax Authority, at the beginning of August, to “announce the amount of stolen money within 15 days,” which has not happened to date.[/size]
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