KHARTOUM (Reuters) – Sudan’s public prosecutor has begun investigating ousted President Omar al-Bashir on charges of money laundering and the possession of large sums of money without legal grounds, a judicial source told Reuters on Saturday.
Bashir, who is also being sought by the International Criminal Court over allegations of genocide in the country’s western Darfur region, was ousted on April 11 by the military following months of protests against his rule and had been held at a presidential residence.
Family sources said this week he had been moved to a high-security prison in Khartoum. Relatives could not be immediately reached on Saturday for comment about the investigation.
The Sudanese Professionals’ Association, leading the protests, has called for holding Bashir and members of his administration to account, a purge of corruption and cronyism and easing an economic crisis that worsened during Bashir’s last years in power.
On Wednesday, Sudan’s transitional military council ordered the central bank to review financial transfers since April 1 and to seize “suspect” funds, according to state news agency SUNA.
The council also ordered the “suspension of the transfer of ownership of any shares until further notice and for any large or suspect transfers of shares or companies to be reported” to authorities.
Reporting by Khalid Abdelaziz; Writing by Nadine Awadalla; Editing by Alison Williams
