A massive haul of gold recently uncovered has been linked to a high-profile anti-corruption case in Iraq.
Iraq’s Supreme Judicial Council has announced the recovery of 375kg of gold connected to a case involving the arrest last month of the former Deputy Minister of Oil for Refining Affairs, Adnan Al Jumaili, on suspicion of corruption.
Judge Dhia Jafar of the Central Anti-Corruption Criminal Court said 358kg of the precious metal was recovered in an operation involving Kurdistan regional authorities, under the supervision of the President of the Supreme Judicial Council Faiq Zidan. An additional 17kg was seized in a separate investigation on the same day. Details of that operation were not disclosed.
The recovered gold has been handed over to the Central Bank of Iraq’s Issue and Treasury Department as authorities work to track down illicitly acquired assets.
It is being seen as a significant development in the escalating anti-corruption crackdown since Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi was appointed in May.
Since then, police have arrested a number of senior officials and uncovered more than $100 million in missing money, plus other valuables.
The assets are tied to the ongoing investigation into al-Jumaili, who was detained in May and officially dismissed from his post on June 2 .
The inquiry is looking into activities since last October and centres on allegations that al-Jumaili exploited state resources and government contracts in exchange for kickbacks and personal gain.
The latest gold seizure as part of the al-Jumaili investigation follows a major discovery announced last Thursday, when authorities found 14 billion Iraqi dinars ($10.6m) hidden inside a rainwater drainage pit.
Iraqi government spokesman Haider al-Aboudi told Al Jazeera that the total funds tracked in al-Jumaili’s case alone exceed 127 billion dinars ($96m) along with an additional $24m, real estate, vehicles and gold jewellery.
The investigations fall under a broader government initiative dubbed “Operation Dawn”, which seeks to track missing or misappropriated state funds.
A number of assets and suspects detained in the anti-corruption campaign include members of parliament, whose political immunity has been lifted to allow for prosecutions.
Al-Aboudi said the anti-corruption campaign is governed by strict judicial procedures and the government does not consider the titles or positions of suspects when pursuing cases.
“We deal with suspects in corruption cases and using the phrase ‘political level’ might not be accurate,” al-Aboudi told Al Jazeera.
“The Iraqi street is looking forward to punishing those who wreaked havoc with public money, and violated its sanctity, as it is the money of all Iraqis.”
Prime Minister al-Zaidi has vowed to pursue anyone abusing state funds, the Iraqi News Agency has reported.
The Iraqi Integrity Commission has prepared legal files to extradite hundreds of suspects currently living abroad and to track down any smuggled assets.
Al-Aboudi confirmed to Al Jazeera that the commission has circulated a “red notice” to countries with which Iraq shares international cooperation protocols to repatriate wanted criminals and funds.
Large-scale operation carried out at dawn in Green Zone and several neighbourhoods in Baghdad, security source says.
A number of senior politicians have been detained in a wave of arrests.
New PM Ali al-Zaidi’s arrest of 47 officials is welcome, but the rot runs through the system that put him in power.
Oil and gas deals are expected to be signed as part of a broader push for economic, trade and investment cooperation.
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