Rabat – A Moroccan notary public was found guilty of misappropriation of financial amounts exceeding MAD 10 Million ($108.5 million) from clients and was sentenced to one year in prison and to pay a fine of MAD 10,000 ($986) and a compensation of MAD 60,000 ($987,200) to a bank.
The sentence was issued on Monday from the Criminal Court of First Instance in capital Rabat. The notary public was convicted under charges of “embezzlement and misappropriation of public and private funds.”
The bank had filed a complaint with the public prosecutor at the Court of Appeal in Rabat when it discovered manipulations and embezzlements committed by the notary, who took loans intended for housing that the bank had granted to a group of clients for purchasing homes.
According to the legal representative of the bank, investigations concluded that the funds were considered public funds, linked to state finances, making his crimes a clear case of embezzlement and misappropriation of public and private funds under his control due to his position.
The accused, a former notary in Sale, had previously received several sentences ranging from two to five years of effective imprisonment for charges of “fraud, breach of trust, and mismanagement of deposits with malicious intent.”
This is not the first time a notary public in Morocco was involved in a case of embezzlement. In March 2022, Morocco’s police issued a nationwide arrest warrant for a Marrakech notary who fled with MAD 30 million ($3 million) stolen from over 45 clients.
The public notary used his knowledge of legal procedures to mislead them and steal their money.
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