jordan pulse -

Amman- The Seventh Judicial Council specialized in corruption cases has sentenced an employee at the Ministry of Education to five years in temporary hard labor and fined him 370,000 dinars on embezzlement charges.

According to case details, the defendant worked as an authorized disbursement officer in one of the ministry's directorates. His job involved receiving allocations from donor entities designated for secondary school students in Syrian refugee camps, withdrawing them from the bank, and depositing them into the ministry's account to be allocated and disbursed to students and staff in those schools.

However, the accused would withdraw the funds but did not deposit them into the Ministry of Education's account. He held this position from 2016 until 2024. Syrian students and staff began complaining about the non-receipt of these funds, prompting the education directorate to form an internal investigation committee from the ministry, the Audit Bureau, and the internal audit division.

The committee discovered a significant discrepancy between the allocated funds and the funds actually disbursed. After accounting, the missing amount was found to be approximately 350,000 dinars.

The employee was subsequently referred to the Integrity and Anti-Corruption Commission's public prosecutor. Following investigation, the findings of the internal committee were confirmed, and he was referred to the judiciary on embezzlement charges.

The Seventh Judicial Council, headed by Judge Mohammad Al-Tarawneh and with the membership of Judge Dr. Mohammad Al-Khawaldeh, and in the presence of the Integrity Commission's public prosecutor, heard the case. It listened to public prosecution and defense witnesses, reaching the conviction that the defendant committed the crime.

He was sentenced according to Article 174 of the Jordanian Penal Code related to the crime of embezzlement and exploitation of position, which stipulates that a public servant who embezzles money or items entrusted to them for management, collection, or safekeeping shall be punished with temporary hard labor and a fine. If the crime is committed through forgery or fraud, the penalty is temporary hard labor for no less than five years.

The council convicted the defendant of embezzlement, sentencing him to five years in prison and ordering him to pay twice the embezzled amount, totaling 370,000 dinars. The verdict is subject to appeal.