Beirut’s interim investigating judge, Bilal Halaoui, issued an arrest warrant on Monday against the ex-central bank governor, Riad Salameh.
He also scheduled a second hearing for Thursday, during which witnesses are expected to be heard.
Salameh, who remains in custody, has 24 hours to appeal the judge’s decision before the indictment chamber. The chamber must either confirm the arrest warrant or release the former Central Bank governor.
However, in an interview with the local MTV channel, Salameh’s lawyer, Mark Habka, indicated that this is a “standard procedure” and that the investigative judge “has to issue an arrest warrant in order to continue his investigation.” In this context, he condemned “the circumstances under which the hearing took place, especially since the media misled public opinion by presenting Salameh as a fugitive, when in fact the former governor appeared voluntarily before the investigative judge.” “Some political figures do not want the truth to be revealed,” he added, referring to how the state’s finances were managed.
Salameh arrived on Monday at the Palace of Justice, accompanied by his lawyer, Mark Habka.
Several demonstrators were on-site to closely follow the developments of the case. They attempted to enter the Palace of Justice. However, the security forces, deployed in the area, blocked their access.
The army and security forces had taken strict measures to prevent any entry or exit from the Palace of Justice since early morning, before the hearing began.
The head of the State Litigation Department, Helene Iskandar (closely affiliated with the Free Patriotic Movement-FPM), who had filed as a civil party in this case, attempted to attend the hearing. Judge Halaoui prevented her from doing so, as Salameh had filed a liability action against her based on judicial conduct. Another state lawyer took part in the hearing.
This was the first hearing related to the Optimum Invest case, in which Salameh was arrested last Tuesday. The decision was taken by the acting public prosecutor of the Court of Cassation, Judge Jamal Hajjar, following three hours of questioning at the Palace of Justice.
The Lebanese brokerage firm, founded in 2004, is suspected of overcharging Lebanese banks by borrowing funds from BDL to purchase Lebanese Treasury bonds and then reselling them at inflated prices, allowing the Central Bank to make profits estimated at several billion dollars.
