Scores of arrests made in case of El Fasher market scam

Authorities arrested scores of merchants accused of having participated in the Mawasir market scam. The two National Congress Party figures accused of having run the money-generating scheme are now in custody of Shalla Prison in North Darfur.  Seventy-nine (79) suspected agents of the Mawasir group have been arrested along with twelve (12) dealers.

Adam Ismail and Mousa Alsadiq were two NCP parliamentary candidates named by a prosecutor as wanted fugitives in the case. Despite this, they both won their election contests in El Fasher. The two men allegedly masterminded the money-generating scheme in which customers sold goods at higher than market value but were paid with money vouchers rather than hard cash. The scam ran for several months until customers began to be unable to redeem the money vouchers.

Minister of Justice Abdel Basit Sabdarat arrived in North Darfur and formed a committee to investigate the dealings of the Mawasir scammers. He said that no one will be above the law. He held closed meetings with the government of North Darfur.

The Mawasir plotters faced the choice of either surrendering their entire profits to the government or else claiming a certain amount of money as theirs and return the rest back to the state, according to the director of the Bank of Sudan branch in El Fasher, who spoke to Radio Dabanga last week. Otherwise they could try to prove that their company was registered legally, in which case they may declare bankruptcy.

Update, 27 Apr. 2010: The two NCP figures implicated in this case are now reported not to be at Shalla Prison but at the house of the governor of West Darfur.