Lebanese prosecutors have charged former central bank governor Riad Salameh with alleged embezzlement of $44.8 million, nearly ten months after a court decision to refer him to trial, according to OCCRP. 

Salameh, who ran Banque du Liban for three decades before stepping down in July 2023, was indicted on charges of embezzlement, forgery, and illicit enrichment, alongside two legal advisers, according to the news agency. The case centers on “consulting accounts” at the central bank, where funds were allegedly deposited and then transferred to private accounts.  

Former Mount Lebanon public prosecutor Judge Ghada Aoun called the indictment “an important development,” while arguing that the amount at issue is only a small slice of a wider alleged scheme, OCCRP said. Aoun has previously alleged that more than $8 billion was stolen from public funds. 

The indictment follows a Beirut court decision last week to refer Salameh to trial, marking the first formal legal action against him inside Lebanon, despite multiple international investigations, the news outlet said. 

Lebanon’s central bank said it is seeking to recover embezzled funds and will join as a plaintiff in related cases. A week earlier, central bank governor Karim Souaid said the bank had begun legal action aimed at recovering misappropriated funds and boosting the liquidity needed to repay depositors, according to the report. 

Salame was released on bail last year and barred from travel, OCCRP reported. The former central bank governor and his brother are also under investigation abroad on suspicion of money laundering and embezzlement, including ongoing cases in Europe. 

Read more at OCCRP