Ouagadougou: The High Authority for State Control and the Fight against Corruption (ASCE-LC) has forwarded a damning report on a former minister to the Prosecutor of Faso at the Ouaga I High Court. “Money laundering, false declarations of assets, and secret financing of a political party” could be charged against a former minister, according to the results of the ASCE-LC’s preliminary investigation, which was forwarded to the courts.
According to Burkina Information Agency, the case began with an anonymous tip received by ASCE-LC in February 2023, alleging the former minister’s sudden and suspicious enrichment. The politician reportedly renovated a ten-hectare farm in Saaba, acquired several properties and vehicles, and made bank deposits, the amounts of which raise questions.
The investigation revealed two suspicious payments of 40 and 80 million CFA francs into an account domiciled in a local bank, which the former minister claimed to have received from his son residing in the United States. However, bank agents claim to have recovered these sums in sealed BCEAO packages, raising serious doubts about their origin.
In addition, three checks, including one for 35 million FCFA, were cashed without any supporting documentation for their use. According to the report, the former minister never declared these bank accounts in his declaration of interests and assets, in violation of the law. The ASCE-LC therefore considers this to be an intentional misrepresentation.
As a member of a political party at the time of the events, he is also suspected of having used these funds to finance his political party during the election period.