Former Governor of the Banque du Liban, Riad Salameh, in his office in Beirut, July 31, 2023. (Credits: Mohamed Azakir/Reuters)
The head of a major Lebanese audit firm was indicted on May 14 in Paris for “complicity in money laundering” over a report he released exonerating former Banque du Liban (BDL) Governor Riad Salameh from allegations of embezzling public funds, AFP learned on Friday from a source close to the case.
Specifically, Antoine G., head of the Lebanese branch of BDO Audit, is suspected of having "facilitated the false justification of the origin of Salameh's assets and income, the structures of which he is the economic beneficiary, or those of his family members," according to details of the investigation obtained by AFP.
This 70-year-old Lebanese-Belgian is implicated as a managing partner of BDO for an "AUP report" (agreed-upon procedures), which was "produced in court to justify the absence of embezzlement of public funds, and thus the lawful origin of Salameh's assets." According to regulations, an AUP report is not intended to verify the accuracy of accounting records but only to list facts.
This November 2021 report was submitted to the investigation two months later by Salameh's defense with the comment, "Prepared by the world's fifth-largest audit firm, it confirms that our client never received funds from the Banque du Liban, except for his salary."
Antoine G. defended himself on May 14 before the investigating judge, stating that this "instrumentalized" report could not "serve as a basis to justify the origin of the funds" or "prove anything." His lawyers, Leon del Forno and Jade Radix Hess, commented that Antoine G. "deplores and firmly contests the misuse of this report for purposes contrary to those for which it was established." They added, "No responsibility can therefore be attributed to him, especially not criminal liability. His indictment will be contested, and he should be granted a dismissal."
Speaking to AFP, William Bourdon, one of the lawyers for the association Sherpa and the Collective of Victims of Fraudulent and Criminal Practices in Lebanon (CPVCL), civil parties, stated that this "indictment is another piece of evidence revealing a family clan's capture of Lebanon's public resources." Besides Riad Salameh, who has been under an arrest warrant since May 2023, at least four other people are being prosecuted in this case.
