Referring the owner of an accounting audit office to criminal prosecution for non-compliance with the decisions regulating the procedures for prohibiting and combating money laundering and terrorist financing

The Head of the Financial Crimes and Money Laundering Prosecution stated that the Public Prosecution has completed its investigations into the incident of a crime committed by one of the owners of the accounting auditing offices in violating the decisions of the Minister of Industry and Trade No. 173 of 2017 and its amendments regarding the obligations related to the procedures for prohibiting and combating money laundering and terrorist financing in the work of persons registered in the commercial register and the auditors’ register. Accounts in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

The details of the incident are related to what was reported to the Ministry of Industry and Trade regarding the discovery that the accused, the owner of an accounting audit office, had committed about 190 violations when contracting and dealing with a number of companies. Keeping records and documents, and not committing to submitting reports on suspicious transactions, all of which are in violation of what was required by the above-mentioned ministerial decision.

The Public Prosecution has begun its investigations by reviewing the procedures taken against the accused by the Auditors Disciplinary Committee and requesting all the original files of the companies involved in the incident. Before the office owner, which constitute punishable crimes under the Law of Prohibition and Combating Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing, I followed it by interrogating the accused, who admitted his failure to comply with his obligations, and then ordered his referral to the competent criminal court.

Accordingly, the Public Prosecution stresses the need for addressees to abide by the ministerial decisions regulating the procedures for prohibiting and combating the crime of money laundering and terrorist financing as required by the law and those decisions, in order to avoid criminal accountability, and because their commitment supports efforts to combat crime.