Iraqi authorities announced the seizure of 25 billion Iraqi dinars ($19.2 million) and four kilograms of gold from a secret cache belonging to deputy oil minister Adnan Al-Jumaili, the Supreme Judicial Council said on July 16. In total, funds seized in the Al-Jumaili case exceeded $96 million, plus $24 million in real estate, vehicles, and gold, government spokesperson Haider al-Aboudi said.
The discovery follows a broader anti-corruption campaign launched on June 28 by Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi that netted 47 suspects, including at least 12 lawmakers and Ali Maaraj, the oil distribution deputy minister sanctioned by the United States in May. Earlier this week, 375 kilograms of gold were recovered across two separate corruption cases.
Separately, the Federal Commission of Integrity sentenced lawmaker Mohammed Nasser Dali Al-Karbooli to two years in prison for soliciting a $50,000 bribe. The crackdown comes ahead of Al-Zaidi's expected visit to Washington in mid-July.