Three members of the Armed Forces and Defense of Mozambique (FADM) and four other individuals belonging to a company that provides construction services to the state were arrested on Monday (19) on charges of embezzling 40.6 million meticais from the General Staff of the FADM.

The FADM officials were assigned to the administration and finance sector, and their arrest was carried out by the Central Office for Combating Corruption (GCCC).

A statement issued by the GCCC to which we have had access says that there is sufficient evidence to suggest that crimes of embezzlement, illicit enrichment, abuse of office or function, tax fraud, criminal association and money laundering have been committed.

In fact, as the note states, criminal proceedings were already underway in the institution, filed in September 2023, "the object of which is the misappropriation of 40,691,022.00 meticais, allocated to the General Staff of the FADM".

Three residential properties and three vehicles were also seized in the same case.

The document ensures that the accused will be brought before the investigating judge within the legal time limits for their first judicial interrogation and the establishment of coercive measures, and that the investigation will continue once this stage has been completed.