Former BDL governor Riad Salameh. (Credit: NNA Archive Photo)
Why did the Beirut Indictement Chamber, chaired on an interim basis by Nassib Elia, decide to release former Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh on a $20 million bail, only eight days before the one-year legal limit after which a defendant held in a criminal case can request release without having to pay bail?Salameh was taken into custody on Sept. 3, 2024, and an arrest warrant was issued against him a few days later in the so-called “Optimum Invest” case. In the latter, he is suspected of embezzling at least $44 million from the Central Bank through transactions with the brokerage firm.A judicial source familiar with the case told L’Orient-Le Jour on Tuesday that the Indictment Chamber based its decision on medical grounds. The court relied on a report by two forensic doctors appointed to assess Salameh’s health. Some critics, speaking...
Why did the Beirut Indictement Chamber, chaired on an interim basis by Nassib Elia, decide to release former Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh on a $20 million bail, only eight days before the one-year legal limit after which a defendant held in a criminal case can request release without having to pay bail?Salameh was taken into custody on Sept. 3, 2024, and an arrest warrant was issued against him a few days later in the so-called “Optimum Invest” case. In the latter, he is suspected of embezzling at least $44 million from the Central Bank through transactions with the brokerage firm.A judicial source familiar with the case told L’Orient-Le Jour on Tuesday that the Indictment Chamber based its decision on medical grounds. The court relied on a report by two forensic doctors appointed to assess Salameh’s health. Some critics,...
Humanitarian convoy reaches Rmeish, Ain Ibl, Dibil despite obstacles
