Al-Bashir to be probed over money-laundering suspicions

Sudan's public attorney on Saturday ordered the African country's ousted President Omar al-Bashir to be investigated on suspicion of money-laundering and possession of large sums of foreign currencies.

If convicted, Al-Bashir, who remains under house arrest since his ouster earlier this month, could be sentenced to up to 10 years in jail.

Army and intelligence officers searched his house and found over 6 million euros, 351,000 dollars and 5 million Sudanese pounds, Anti-corruption prosecutor Moatasem Abdullah Mahmud was cited as saying by Efe news.

The public attorney had issued an order granting the security forces permission to enter Al-Bashir's house, located in the Army headquarters.

The sums of money found in Al-Bashir's house will have to be deposited in the Central Bank of Sudan, according to the statement.

The statement concluded that the public attorney's office "has immediately started to implement the orders of the military council and carry out its duty to fight corruption".

Al-Bashir, who was ousted on April 11 by the military in the wake of massive protests that broke out in December, has been transferred to a maximum security prison in Khartoum, reports say.

His two brothers are also under arrest as they are "symbols of the overthrown regime" who are allegedly involved in corruption cases, Transitional Military Council spokesperson Shams Aldin Kabashi told the state-run TV on Wednesday.

The military council, which has been running Sudan since the Army ousted Al-Bashir, has announced that they will oversee a two-year transition period, and started a negotiation process with the political parties over the political transition in the African country.

The leaders of the uprising, as well as the opposition groups, are expected to announce on Sunday their candidates to the new government that they want to replace the military leadership of the country.

Sudanese demonstrators remain in front of the Army headquarters in Khartoum, calling for speeding up the transfer of power to a civil authority.

Al-Bashir had been in power for almost 30 years after he led a coup in the oil-rich country in 1989.

Since the country split with South Sudan in 2011, Sudan has been increasingly paralyzed by protests and instability, as well as a worsening economic crisis.

--IANS

soni/bg