Iraqi PM: Probe recovers part of $2.5B embezzled from taxes

Associated Press

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s prime minister says part of the staggering $2.5 billion in funds embezzled from the country’s tax authority will be retrieved and that an investigation to recover the full amount is ongoing. Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said Sunday in a statement 182 billion Iraqi dinars, or $125 million, will be recovered through the seizure of properties and assets belonging to a well-connected businessman complicit in the fraud. The premier stressed the ongoing investigation would not spare anyone involved in the scheme. Officials say it’s unlikely that an embezzlement scheme of this scale could unfold without the knowledge of higher-ups.