Tag Archives | Corruption

The latest corruption news from Iraq – company or government bribes, theft, stealing – brought to you by Iraq Business News

The Great Zloty Fraud: Money Changers in Karbala

By Mohammed Hamid al-Sawaf. This article was originally published by Niqash. Any opinions expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Iraq Business News. Unofficial money changers are common in Iraq – and trade is particularly brisk in the tourist town of Karbala. But recently a gang of fraudsters […]

$27bn spent on Electricity Sector since 2003

By John Lee. A spokesman from the parliamentary oil and gas committee has said that $27 billion has been spent on the electricity sector in Iraq since 2003, and that vast amounts of money have been wasted through corruption. According to AKnews, Qasim Mohammed said: "Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Hussain Shahristani will be […]

Former AWB Boss Fined in Oil-for-Food Scandal

By John Lee. The former managing director of Australian wheat exporter AWB has been fined 100,000 Australian dollars ($106,000) and banned from being a company director for two years for his role in paying kickbacks to Iraq's former dictatorship under the discredited UN oil-for-food program. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the breaches related to […]

Hundreds Convicted of Fraud in 1st Half 2012

By John Lee. In the first half of this year, Iraq's courts have issued 754 judgments in cases dealing with corruption and fraud involving public money, claims the Commission on Integrity. The cases, referred to the courts by the Commission, resulted in 816 convictions. In some cases, those convicted will remain in jail following completion […]

Halliburton Opens Internal Probe on Iraq Payments

By John Lee. Halliburton has begun internal investigations into alleged payments made to third-party agents related to customs matters in Angola and Iraq. Bloomberg reports that the world’s second- largest oilfield services provider alerted U.S. Justice Department and Securities and Exchange officials that it had begun the inquiry after meeting with them about another internal […]

Iraq Auditor Questions $636m in Costs

By John Lee. The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR), Stuart Bowen (pictured), has found serious weaknesses in the government’s controls over Iraq reconstruction funds that put billions of American taxpayer dollars at risk of waste and misappropriation. The precise amount lost to fraud and waste can never be known, but SIGIR believes it […]

UK Men Charged with Selling Fake Bomb Detectors to Iraq

By John Lee. British Police have charged six people over the sale of allegedly fake bomb detection equipment to foreign countries, including Iraq. James McCormick, 55, who has been charged with six counts of fraud, was the director of British-based security company ATSC that sold explosive-detecting devices, according to Reuters. The ATSC website says its […]

Iraqi Dinar Investments: Opportunity or Scam?

Better Business Bureau (BBB) is warning consumers across the United States to be wary when considering any foreign currency investment, particularly the Iraqi dinar. Over the years, BBB complaints nationwide about dinar investments allege a number of scams surrounding the profit potential of dinar currency investments. For this reason, BBB advises consumers looking to buy […]

AWB CFO Admits to Iraq Payments

The former CFO of Australia's AWB has admitted to authorising payments to Saddam Hussein's Iraqi government. According to a report in the Herald Sun, Paul John Ingleby, aged 60, admitted he failed to "join the dots" and question payments disguised as inland transport fees before approving the transactions which ultimately went to Hussein's regime. The […]

Integrity Commission Highlights Fraud at Rafidain Bank

Iraq's Commission on Integrity has revealed details of fraudulent credit operations in the Ministry of Defense's branch of Rafidain Bank, noting that the director of the bank granted illegal loans in excess of "150 billion Iraqi dinars" ($129 million). The commission said that the director of the bank allowed conditions for the granting of loans […]