The trial of Issad Rebrab, CEO of the first private group in Algeria, Cevital, prosecuted for fiscal, banking and customs offenses, opened Tuesday, December 31, in a court in Algiers. The prosecution demanded a year in prison against the man considered the richest in the country.
The prosecution also demanded a fine equivalent to twice the value of the water purification machine at the center of the case.
In this case examined by the court of Sidi M'hamed, Issad Rebrab, arrested in April, is tried with two companies, Evcon, a subsidiary of the Cevital group and the Jordanian banking establishment The Housing Bank for trade and finance (HBTF), said the official agency APS. They are prosecuted for "violation of the laws and regulations of exchange and capital movements from and to abroad", "forgery and use of forgeries" and "false customs declaration".
Issab Rebrab has denied all the allegations against him, refusing to recognize "the expertise carried out on equipment imported from abroad and the subject of the false customs declaration", according to the APS. The judge found that the expertise had demonstrated the true value of this equipment, which is well below that mentioned in the customs declaration.
Read: Arrest of five Algerian billionaires, including relatives of Bouteflika
A fortune of $ 3.8 billion
Issad Rebrab, 74, founded in 1998 the Cevital conglomerate, which claims 18,000 employees on three continents, in the food industry, the building and public works, the steel industry, distribution, electronics and even household appliances. Forbes magazine estimates its fortune at 3.8 billion dollars, the 1st in Algeria and the 6th in Africa.
Since the resignation under pressure of a popular protest movement on April 2 of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, justice has opened investigations against several businessmen linked to the former presidential clan.
Owner in Algeria of the French-language daily Liberté, Cevital notably bought in France the appliance group Brandt (brands Brandt, De Dietrich, Sauter and Vedette) and the manufacturer of doors and windows Oxxo, based in Saône-et-Loire. The group also has a major water treatment plant project in the Ardennes.
With AFP
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