The Banaadir Regional Court in Mogadishu has begun hearing the cases of several former government officials who are accused of embezzling millions of dollars of public funds.
Among the defendants are Mohamed Adan Koofi, the former Director General of the Immigration and Citizenship Agency, who allegedly stole 4 million dollars from the agency’s budget and faced other charges from the Office of the Attorney General.
Another defendant is Abdulqadir Cilmi Ali, who also served as the Director General of the Immigration and Citizenship Agency, and is accused of involvement in crime and negligence of duty and responsibility of a government office. He is also suspected of participating in embezzlement of government revenue amounting to 5,327,355 dollars.
The court also received the cases of Osman Hassan Cosoble, Abdikafi Hassan Mohamed and Muxiyadiin Hassan Jurus Saabeey, who were the Director of Revenue of the Ministry of Finance in the East, and are accused of embezzling 20 million dollars of public funds.
The court is expected to deliver its verdicts in the coming days, as the Somali government continues its efforts to combat corruption and improve accountability in the public sector.
