28 May 2008

Four Solomon Islands bureaucrats facing a raft of corruption charges

7:43 pm on 28 May 2008

Solomon Islands police have charged two government officials and two former bureaucrats over a sophisticated scam that swindled nearly 13,000 US dollars from an AusAID health programme.

The police corruption squad began investigating in January this year after the health and medical services ministry's 2006 audit found a number of suspicious transactions during 2005.

Police say the men had exceptional knowledge of the ministry's internal finance system and orchestrated a scheme to receive duplicate payments by re-using unmarked original invoices.

A 58-year-old former chief accountant of the ministry has been charged with corruption, abuse of office, and four counts of larceny and embezzlement.

A 41-year-old former principal accountant is accused of corruption, abuse of office, and five counts of larceny and embezzlement.

A 39-year-old director of planning and policy faces charges of official corruption, abuse of office, and one count of larceny and embezzlement.

A 37-year-old accountant was charged with abuse of office and one count of receiving.

The four have been bailed and will appear in the Honiara magistrates' court on June the 10th.