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FBI agents to visit Malta in Pilatus chairman probe

Malta Today- 24 March 2018- FBI Agents are expected to be paying a visit to Malta as part of their investigation into the former chairman of Pilatus Bank Seyed Ali Sadr Hasheminejad, according to reports.


A report in the Times of Malta claims that FBI experts had already been in touch with several authorities in Malta.


Hasheminejad, the Iranian-born owner of Pilatus Bank, based in Ta’ Xbiex, is currently in US custody, having been arrested on Monday. He is facing the prospect of up to 125 years in jail in connection with an indictment for offences which include money laundering and evading US sanctions on Iran. US prosecutors are alleging that Hasheminejad evaded US sanctions against Iran through a series of shell companies and foreign bank accounts, laundering $115 million from Iranian business dealings in Venezuela between April 2011 and November 2013.


The report suggests that US investigators were remaining tight-lipped about the nature of their Malta visit.


The investigators are expected to be visiting Pilatus Bank’s Ta’ Xbiex offices and are understood to be in contact with the Malta Financial Services Authority, the police and Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit, among others.


The investigation remains open, despite what appears to be a considerable amount of evidence having already been compiled against the banker.


On Wednesday, the MFSA’s supervisory council was convened after news of Hasheminejad’s arrest broke in Malta and later announced that it had ordered Pilatus Bank to remove Hasheminejad from all executive roles.


A replacement was appointed by the financial services watchdog and the bank was directed to halt all operations and transactions with clients’ assets until the MFSA releases them.


The MFSA itself is also subject to a preliminary inquiry by the European Banking Authority, which last month announced it would be looking into the MFSA’s supervision of the bank, which had been featured in several leaked FIAU reports.

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