Four female suspects stood accused Sunday in the seventh trial session dealing with Iran’s $3-billion bank fraud.
The Mehr News Agency reports that the four women worked for the Amir Mansour Arya Company as treasurer, accountant, supplier and secretary.
The treasurer is charged with “participation in disrupting the economic system of the country, acting as accessory to forgery, fraud and money laundering.” She has denied all charges brought against her.
According to the prosecutor, the accused had formerly confessed to bribing a manager at Pasargad Bank. She also told the court that it was common for the managers at Amir Arya Company to sign for each other to “speed up” the job.
The accountant from Amir Arya Company cried during the session, saying: “I ask for pardon. I did not know about the offences.”
The supplier, who is charged with “money laundering and disrupting the economic system”, denied the charges against her, saying: “Your honour, after six months working with the company, all the newspapers were writing that Mr. Khosravi [the company director] is a national hero and job creator. I never thought that they were criminals.”
The fourth suspect, who was a secretary at Amir Arya Company, was unable to travel from Kish due to medical reasons, according to her lawyer, who said she denies her charges of “fabricating documents, disrupting the economic system and money-laundering.”
Her lawyer indicated that she was merely responsible for receiving and delivering packages at the airport.
The Prosecutor’s representative said in court that the charges against these suspects were “evident”, adding: “Of course Mr. Khosravi had many female employees, and 50 percent of his staff were women, like in Ghaddafi’s regime, because women do not betray their bosses.”
The $3-billion fraud case hit the Iranian media last summer. The Amir Mansour Arya Company is charged with embezzling $3-billion dollars from banks through the sale of fraudulent letters of credit. The scheme appears to have been carried out with the collaboration of several bank managers as well as government officials and MPs.
