ERBIL () — Iraq’s Federal Integrity Commission announced on Wednesday that the Central Criminal Court for Combating Corruption has sentenced lawmaker Baha al-Din Noor Mohammed Hussein, known as Baha Nouri, to seven years in prison for unlawful gain and ordered him to return more than 40 billion Iraqi dinars (more than $30.5 million), representing the value of the unlawful gains and an equivalent financial penalty.
The commission said the Central Criminal Court for Combating Corruption issued the seven-year prison sentence against Nouri, a member of the Iraqi Council of Representatives, under Article 19, Clause Two, of the amended Integrity Commission and Unlawful Gain Law No. 30 of 2011.
According to the commission, the court determined that the value of the unlawful gains amounted to 5.887 billion Iraqi dinars (approximately $4.50 million) and $10.991 million, bringing the total value of the alleged unlawful gains to approximately $15.49 million.
The court ordered Nouri to return those amounts to the state and imposed an additional financial penalty equivalent to the value of the unlawful gains, in accordance with Article 19, Clause Four, of the same law.
Taken together, the value of the unlawful gains and the equivalent financial penalty amount to more than 40 billion Iraqi dinars (approximately $30.98 million) based on the figures cited by the commission and today’s exchange rate.
The commission also said the court issued a separate three-year sentence of imprisonment against Nouri under Article 19, Clause Five, over the concealment of information in his financial disclosure form.
The court decided to enforce the harsher of the applicable sentences and upheld the seizure of Nouri’s movable and immovable assets, according to the statement.
The ruling comes as Iraq’s Federal Integrity Commission and anti-corruption courts continue to pursue cases involving unlawful financial gains and violations of financial disclosure requirements by public officials.
