The Hall of Lost Footsteps at the Beirut Palace of Justice. (Credit: Claude Assaf/L'Orient-Le Jour)
One after the other, former Prime Minister Fouad Siniora and former Minister Mohammad Shoucair appeared on Wednesday before the first investigative judge of Beirut, Roula Osman, to testify as witnesses in the so-called "Abu Omar" case.
This alias was used by a plumber from Akkar (North Lebanon), Moustapha Hessian, who pretended to politicians and businessmen to be a Saudi emir capable of guaranteeing them support from the kingdom in exchange for payments.
The hearings of the two former officials did not exceed thirty minutes each. It was Shoucair's second appearance in this case, as he had already testified on Dec. 31 before the public prosecutor at the Court of Cassation, Jamal Hajjar.
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In contrast, it was the first time Siniora appeared before the judiciary in this case. A source close to the former prime minister said that a friend of his, whom he trusted but who was also deceived by "Abu Omar," introduced him to the fake prince.
Siniora then added him to his mailing list, sometimes sending him, like many others, statements, positions, and other official messages.
The exchanges ended, however, after the fake prince contacted Siniora to ask him to support a certain individual for the position of prime minister, before the appointment in January 2025 of current Prime Minister Nawaf Salam. According to the aforementioned source, who did not wish to disclose the name of the person proposed to Siniora, the latter firmly rejected such a proposal, after which all communication between the two men ceased.
Judge Osman also questioned for about half an hour Khaldoun Oraymet, an influential Sunni sheikh suspected of having played a key role in facilitating contact between several political figures and "Abu Omar." Brought in under heavy escort, the sheikh had been placed in custody on Dec. 31 by public prosecutor Jamal Hajjar, before being the subject of an arrest warrant issued on Jan. 20 by Judge Osman, who had just interrogated him.
According to our information, Sheikh Oraymet was questioned Wednesday, in particular, about a conversation he is said to have had with Minister Shoucair regarding "Abu Omar," although it was not possible to know precisely the content of his answers.
His lawyer, Sakhr Hashem, who accompanied him, as well as Youssef Zeaiter, Hessian's lawyer, who was also arrested, have both requested the release of their clients, according to media reports.
A source close to the case told L'Orient-Le Jour that the investigative judge should soon hear other political figures.
Next Wednesday, there may be a confrontation between Sheikhs Oraymet and Khaled Sabsabi, who was prosecuted on Jan. 12 by Beirut Appeals Court public prosecutor Raja Hamoush for "false statements."
He claimed to have introduced "Abu Omar" to Sheikh Oraymet, before retracting and explaining that he wanted to protect the latter and prevent the judiciary from blaming him for the alleged scam. He was released on condition that he appear again for further investigation.
The magistrate should also summon Mohammad Oraymet, (son of Sheikh Khaldoun Oraymet).
However, it seems unlikely that he will appear, as he is said to be out of the country. Judge Hamoush had initiated proceedings against him for the same offenses as his father and Hessian, namely "disturbing relations with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, fraud, blackmail, and influencing the will of political officials during the vote."
According to our information, a businessman, Ahmad Haddara, who had requested a judicial inquiry from the cassation prosecutor, after which the alleged deception was revealed, became a civil party on Tuesday.
This adds a private action to the public prosecution. Further according to our sources, the lawyer for "Abu Omar" intends to file a complaint against Haddara for "kidnapping" his client and acts of violence against him. He accuses Haddara of organizing the abduction of the fake emir and extracting confessions from him by force when he discovered he had been duped, before turning to the courts.
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