Iraq seizes mounds of gold and millions in cash in corruption crackdown
An anti-corruption probe in Iraq leads to seizure of 825 pounds of gold and tens of millions in cash from lawmakers and government officials.
Iraqi authorities have seized more than 825 pounds of gold and ten of millions in cash in a series of anti-corruption operations that led to the arrest of at least 21 people, including dozens of government officials and several former and current members of parliament.
The seizures were connected to the arrest in May of a former deputy oil minister, Adnan Al-Jumaili, on suspicion of corruption.
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi, who took up the role in May, has vowed to tackle graft in the country. But the mission won't be easy, a government official who asked to remain anonymous told CBS News.
The number of implicated officials and the piles of confiscated gold and cash in U.S. dollars and Iraqi dinar, as well as vehicles and homes seized in the operation, shows the scale of graft in the country. And this probe only related to one sector: oil.
"The latest campaign was unexpected," said the official, not only because it came soon into Al-Zaidi's tenure, but also because many previous prime ministers have paid lip-service to tackling corruption without actually doing so.
"It came as a surprise to all involved and it will continue to include corruption cases in other sectors."