https://aawsat.com/english/home/article/1764026/egypt’s-interior-ministry-seizes-le34-bn-money-launderers

At a time Egypt is preparing to host the first African Anti-Corruption Forum (AACF), the African country’s Counter-Narcotics and Organized Crime Sector of the Ministry of Interior announced the seizure of LE3.4 billion from 61 cases that involved money laundering crimes within a year.

Authorities made the announcement during the fourth conference against crimes of money laundering, which kicked off on Saturday and lasted for three days.

More so, the ministry explained that it recorded 61 cases of money laundering in illegal drug trade from June 2018 to May 2019, with the estimated money seized as a result recording LE3.4 billion, demonstrating an unprecedented effort in tracking drug traffickers.

During the session, the conference addressed the legislative policy for the law against money laundering crimes and ways to improve the performance of officers in applying the law.

The participants reviewed efforts to combat money laundering crimes, through coordination with concerned authorities to target the capital and wealth of drug smugglers, thereby undermining their financial capabilities and preventing them from using their wealth in the illegal trade of drugs.

The conference ended with a number of recommendations to maximize the role of control bodies including holding rehabilitation programs for officers.

On the other hand, Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi inaugurated the AACF in Sharm El-Sheikh on Wednesday with participating representatives from various African countries and top state officials in attendance.

The AACF is set to witness the participation of ministers of justice and interior as well as the chairpersons of anti-corruption authorities, auditing institutions, and illicit gains authorities. Over 200 senior officials from regional and international institutions will also partake in the forum.

It is worth noting that Egypt was unanimously elected the 2019 chair of the African Union (AU), which in turn dubbed 2018 as the African anti-corruption year.

The AU Summit of January 2018 was held under the theme ‘winning the Fight against Corruption: A Sustainable Path to Africa’s Transformation.’

Egypt will also host the fourth annual general meeting of the Africa Association of Anti-Corruption Authorities on 14-15 June 2019.