
Former Economy Minister Amin Salam.
BEIRUT — Attorney General at the Court of Cassation Judge Jamal Hajjar ordered the arrest of former Economy Minister Amin Salam on Wednesday, following a hearing during which he was confronted by ministry officials, a senior judicial source told L’Orient-Le Jour.
Judge Hajjar plans to transfer the case to Acting Financial Prosecutor Dora al-Khazen.
Salam is under investigation for alleged falsification, embezzlement of public funds, and blackmailing insurance companies. The accusations were brought by Parliament’s Economy Committee, chaired by MP Farid Boustany, who submitted a request two months ago to open a judicial investigation.
The committee alleges that Salam signed contracts with foreign companies for inflated sums relative to the services rendered and used money from the Insurance Companies Contribution Fund — a fund supervised by the Economy Ministry — for personal purposes.
The investigation also implicates Salam’s brother and business associate, Karim Salam; his adviser, Fadi Tamim; and Elie Abboud, a certified public accountant and president of the Union of Certified Public Accountants.
Karim Salam has been detained since April 8, following action by the financial prosecutor’s office. On May 13, the Beirut Court of Appeal — presided over by Judge Maher Cheaito — overturned a prior decision by Investigating Judge Bilal Halaoui, who had granted his release on bail. Though he appealed, the court upheld the prosecution’s request to keep him in detention.
Salam was previously questioned several times in May by Judge Hajjar. He was then released on bail under house arrest and placed under a travel ban.
On June 2, interim State Litigation Department head Judge Claude Ghanem filed a complaint with the Court of Cassation, led by Prosecutor Hajjar, against Salam at the request of current Economy Minister Amer Bsat.