A former bank official in Detroit was arrested and accused of embezzling $438,000 and illegally wiring it to banks in Lebanon and Jordan, reports the Detroit News. As part of a government crackdown on the illegal transfer of money, federal antiterrorism prosecutors have brought three cases in Detroit since October, accusing people of attempting to send money to the Middle East. FBI agents arrested former Huntington Bank Assistant Vice President Issam Abdul Hakim-Berjaoui last week on his return from Amsterdam. He is being held without bond.
A grand jury in October charged three people from Tampa, Fla. with conspiring to transport $28,400 to Iran, in violation of U.S. law. Yesterday, the U.S. Attorney's Office unsealed a grand jury indictment charging 10 other Detroiters with conspiracy, bank fraud, ID theft and money laundering, accusing them of “flipping properties” to defraud 10 banks of at least $1.4 million in buying and selling properties in Dearborn and Detroit.
Link: http://www.detnews.com/2004/metro/0407/01/b01-200470.htm