The United States, in collaboration with the UK and Canada, has imposed sanctions on Riad Salameh, the former governor of Lebanon’s central bank, along with four individuals closely connected to him, alleging that they enriched themselves at the expense of the Lebanese people. A statement from the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) pointed to Salameh’s actions as having contributed to the erosion of the rule of law in Lebanon.
Salameh, who served as the central bank governor for three decades before stepping down last month, is accused of exploiting his position to funnel hundreds of millions of dollars through intricate shell companies, with a focus on investing in European real estate. The sanctioned individuals include his son Nady, his brother Raja, Marianne Hoayek (his primary assistant at the bank), and Anna Kosakova (his former partner).
The intricate schemes involved Salameh’s brother Raja and the use of shell companies, particularly Forry Associates, owned by Raja in the British Virgin Islands. Approximately $330 million was allegedly diverted from transactions involving the central bank through this scheme. A contract was approved by Salameh to allow Forry Associates to receive a “commission on purchases of financial instruments by Lebanese retail banks,” despite the company’s lack of apparent contribution to these transactions.
Funds diverted through these actions were subsequently moved to bank accounts in the names of Salameh, Raja, or other shell companies. Marianne Hoayek, Salameh’s primary assistant, played a role in this scheme, transferring “hundreds of millions of dollars – far more than her official salary accounted for – from her own bank account to those of Salameh and Raja.”
These diverted funds were often directed to property management companies in France, Germany, Luxembourg, and Belgium, registered in the names of Salameh’s son Nady or his former partner Anna Kosakova.
The sanctions imposed by the US, UK, and Canada result in the freezing of any US-based assets owned by Salameh and his associates, and prohibit transactions between them and US citizens or businesses. However, the central bank is not affected by these measures.
Salameh faces formal accusations of embezzling hundreds of millions in public funds from the central bank in Lebanon, France, and Germany. He is also under investigation in several other countries for corruption charges, and Interpol Red Notices have been issued based on arrest warrants from Germany and France.
In response, Salameh has denied the allegations made by the three countries imposing sanctions, and he has indicated that he intends to challenge them. Some of his assets had already been frozen as part of previous investigations, he noted in messages to Reuters.