(MENAFN- Mid-East.Info) Brussels – Prince Laurent of Belgium is facing a criminal complaint alleging fraud, extortion and trading in influence, a lawyer lodging the complaint on behalf of his client, the Libyan investment Authority (LIA), announced at a press conference yesterday.
On Thursday this week, Christophe Marchand, Founding Partner at law firm Jus Cogens representing the LIA, filed a criminal complaint against Prince Laurent, the King's brother, as a civil party with the Brussels Examining Magistrate.
In the complaint, the LIA requested Belgian authorities to investigate Prince Laurent for alleged extortion, fraud, and trading in influence (illegal interceding).
The LIA alleges in its criminal complaint that Prince Laurent attempted to obtain payment of nearly €70 million arising from a contract concluded between his non-governmental organization, the Global Sustainable Development Trust (GSDT), and the Libyan State in 2008 by amongst other things, filing a criminal complaint for“breach of trust” and“money laundering” against the LIA in 2015. As a result of that complaint, an investigation conducted by Belgian Judge Michel Claise was opened.
The LIA said in its criminal complaint that the facts [of this case] are“particularly shocking”. The LIA also alleges that Prince Laurent of Belgium may have resorted to initiating a criminal action against the LIA in order to obtain repayment of a debt“whose reality and origin raise many questions”, particularly with regard to the links forged with the regime of Muammar Gaddafi, whose practice of corrupting European dignitaries was widely known.
The LIA and its lawyers claim they have indications that Prince Laurent has subjected the fund to“unacceptable pressure” since the investigation was opened in 2015. They explained that they have elements showing that the Prince tried to obtain payment from the LIA by claiming to be able to drastically influence the course of the [aforementioned] investigation, in particular as to the issue of the arrest warrant against the LIA's CEO, Dr. Ali Mohammed Hassan (Dr. Ali).
Christophe Marchand said:“The criminal complaint we filed alleges fraud and extortion by Prince Laurent. Further, we allege that Prince Laurent used undue influence to try to pressurise our client into paying him a large amount of money for a dispute that we say had nothing to do with our client.
“We carefully analysed the evidence of this case, which should send shockwaves through the Belgian royal family and may raise questions at the international level as to the independence of the judicial system in Belgium in this matter. We are exhausting every legal avenue open to us through the Belgian courts
“We have been left with no option but to launch a criminal case against Prince Laurent. We have communicated factual elements to the investigative judge showing, according to us, that Prince Laurent abused his status as a public office holder, claiming he could influence the criminal procedure against LIA and his CEO.”
In Belgium, influence trading can be punished by a prison sentence of six months to four years and a fine of €100 to €10,000; fraud can result in a prison sentence of one month to five years and a fine of €26 to €3,000; and extortion can be punished with five to ten years' imprisonment, according to the criminal complaint.
Further case background:
Dr. Ali has been the Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of the Libyan Investment Authority, the sovereign wealth fund of Libya, since 2017. The LIA was established in August 2006 and is independent from the Libyan state.
Due to severe political instability in Libya in 2011, the United Nations (UN) Security Council Committee ordered to freeze all funds owned or controlled by Muammar Gaddafi, including the LIA's. In 2018, the LIA's assets frozen in Belgium were worth €14 billion ($17 billion).
From 2011 to the end of October 2017, the LIA was legally paid the interest yielded by its funds frozen in Belgium. The payments were authorised by the Belgian Ministry of Finance, according to undisputed EU guidelines.
The commercial dispute between Prince Laurent of Belgium and the state of Libya concerns a failed reforestation scheme between Global Sustainable Development Trust (GSDT), an entity headed by Prince Laurent, the brother of the Belgian King, and the regime of the late Muammar Gaddafi in 2008.
As a result, Prince Laurent started a litigious and political campaign against Dr. Ali and the LIA in an abusive process to target LIA funds in relation to this entirely unrelated contractual dispute. This included an INTERPOL Red Notice, which was recently deleted on the grounds that this is clearly a political dispute, and a European arrest warrant, which the LIA is contesting in the European Court of Human Rights.