Saudi government to confiscate $800 billion from alleged corrupt individuals
http://www.foxnews.com/world/2017/11/08/saudi-government-to-confiscate-800-billion-from-alleged-corrupt-individuals.htmlSaudi Arabia said it is targeting the assets of several ultra-rich businessmen and more than 60 princes in its recenrt crackdown on alleged currpution in the kingdom, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Multiple bank account of “persons of interests” have been frozen. The Saudi central bank saying the move was “in response to the Attorney General’s request pending the legal cases against them.”
The bank said in a statement on Tuesday that only individual accounts were subject to freeze, while corporate accounts remain functional.
The government has said that any wealth acquired through corruption will be nationalized, aiming to turn the assets worth up to $800 billion into a state property. “They reckon that they could get around 2 to 3 trillion riyals from these people. That’s the number they are talking about,” a Saudi government insider told the Journal.
The crackdown was facilitated by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who was named heir to the throne back in June, claiming tackling corruption in the oil-dependent kingdom was necessary to modernize the economy....
