Lebanon's Mikati says Monaco corruption probe against him has ended
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Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati heads a cabinet meeting, at the government palace in Beirut, Lebanon March 27, 2023. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir/File Photo
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BEIRUT - Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said on Friday that Monaco has ended a three-year investigation into him and his family over corruption allegations due to insufficient evidence.
The investigations were opened after some "Lebanese entities" submitted information about illicit enrichment and money laundering in regard to him and members of his family, Mikati's office said in a statement.
In a letter seen by Reuters, Monaco's deputy public prosecutor, Morgan Raymond, informed Mikati's legal team that the investigation had been closed, saying the money laundering charges appeared unfounded.
Monaco's public prosecution office did not reply to a Reuters request for comment.
A Lebanese news organisation, Daraj, had reported in 2021 on the "Pandora Papers", a set of leaked documents purporting to reveal offshore transactions involving global political and business figures.
As part of its reporting, Daraj said Mikati owned an offshore firm in Panama called Hessvile through which he bought a property in Monaco worth 7 million euros ($7.56 million).
Mikati, one of Lebanon's richest men, had said in response that his family wealth comes from a communications business that has been audited in the past and is legal. REUTERS
