Switzerland investigating legal status of Egypt’s Mubarak assets in Swiss banks

By Yomna Yasser On Sep 7, 2017

Investigations into former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak’s frozen assets in Swiss banks are being conducted “independently” in both Switzerland and Egypt, the Swiss embassy in Cairo said in an official statement on Wednesday.

The embassy said that joint judicial cooperation on the case is ongoing between Egypt and Switzerland to determine whether the funds were illegally obtained, and that no final decision has been made regarding whether the funds will be returned to Egypt.

Based on initial estimates by the Swiss government, Mubarak’s total assets in Swiss banks amount to CHF 650 million ($698 million).

In June 2015, Valentin Zellweger, the director of the taskforce on asset recovery at the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), said that the Swiss government requires evidence from an Egyptian court proving that the funds deposited in Swiss banks were obtained through illicit means, whether by corruption, embezzlement or money laundering.

In January 2016, Mubarak and his sons lost a final appeal on a conviction for embezzling public funds.

Mubarak and his two sons were found guilty of embezzling 125 million pounds in public funds originally allocated for the upkeep of presidential buildings, and were sentenced to three years in prison.

Mubarak is the first Egyptian president to stand trial and be convicted of corruption.

Source: Ahram online