The Deputy of the Audit Bureau has sent a letter to the Attorney General regarding a complaint filed by Malek Baayou, General Manager of Al-Inma Oil & Gas Company, in which he described actions taken against him by the head of the Audit Bureau as arbitrary. He emphasized that the company he manages is a Libyan joint-stock company with private funds that are not subject to the Bureau’s oversight. He urged the Attorney General to address the measures and correspondence issued by the Bureau in light of the referenced judicial rulings.
The Public Prosecution had previously placed Malek Baayou on the travel watchlist, issued an arrest warrant against him, and referred him to the Attorney General’s Office based on ongoing investigations into a report filed by the head of the Audit Bureau.
It is noteworthy that Malek Baayou appeared before the specialized criminal division for financial corruption cases at the Tunis Primary Court alongside his wife. They were prosecuted for charges of aggravated breach of trust, money laundering by exploiting professional privileges, and complicity in these crimes.
The case originated from a complaint filed by the legal representative of a branch of Al-Inma Oil & Gas in Tunisia, alleging that the defendant caused financial harm and embezzled significant sums amounting to billions of millimes.
The Audit Bureau had previously issued a report uncovering corruption within Al-Inma Oil & Gas, detailing the procedures of a $30 million loan granted to the company through Al-Inma Financial Investments Holding Company. On May 30, 2018, the General Manager of Al-Inma Oil & Gas sent an official request (Letter No. 165-2018) to the fund’s Board of Directors, asking for the completion of the company’s capital with an amount of 56.5 million Libyan dinars.
The report exposed extensive corruption and violations, including Malik Baayou transferring funds from Al-Inma’s Tunisian branch to his own “single-member company” under the name “International Trade Complex,” with a transferred amount exceeding $6 million.
The Audit Bureau’s report also revealed coordination with the Attorney General’s Office regarding this case, leading to the suspension and referral of the General Director for Corporate Performance Evaluation to the Attorney General, as well as the suspension of several officials from the Social and Economic Development Fund. Several committees were formed to conduct audits and verification processes, including one tasked with assessing financial transactions at Al-Inma’s Tunisian branch, which was prevented from performing its duties by the branch’s management. Another committee was established to follow up on financial corruption related to the loan grant, initiating interrogation records for those involved in preparation for their referral to the Attorney General’s Office.
