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Bribery Scandal Rocks Chad’s Former Ambassador
Chad’s former Ambassador to the United States and Canada, Mahamoud Adam Bechir, allegedly accepted a $2 million bribe from a Canadian energy company in exchange for influencing the award of oil development rights in Chad, according to a recent civil forfeiture complaint filed by federal authorities.
Bechir, 49, served as Chad’s Ambassador to the United States and Canada from 2004 to 2012, during which time he allegedly entered into a series of agreements with Griffiths Energy International Inc. to secure the oil rights in Chad. In February 2011, Griffiths Energy allegedly transferred $2 million to an account located in Washington, D.C. held by a shell company created by Bechir’s wife, Nouracham Niam, 44.
Griffiths Energy pleaded guilty in Canadian court to bribing Bechir in 2013. The complaint further alleges that Bechir transferred $1,474,517 of the criminal proceeds traceable to the bribe payment to his account in South Africa, where he is now serving Chad’s Ambassador to South Africa.
The U.S. government is seeking the forfeiture of $106,488.31, which is the current balance of Bechir’s accounts in South Africa. Those funds have been seized pursuant to the complaint unsealed today. The government is also seeking additional assets from Bechir and Niam.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI, and the case is being handled by Trial Attorney Nalina Sombuntham of the Criminal Division’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section.
The Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative is a program that seeks to forfeit the proceeds of foreign official corruption and return them to benefit the people harmed by these acts of corruption. Individuals with information about possible proceeds of foreign corruption located in or laundered through the United States should contact federal law enforcement or send an email to kleptocracy@usdoj.gov.
Key Facts
- State: Federal
- Category: Public Corruption
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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