Three employees of the Center for the Development of Information Systems and Finance (CEDSIF) and the owner of a company, whose name and area of operation have not been revealed, have been detained since December 7, accused of hatching a scheme that culminated in the theft of more than 5.9 million meticais from the state coffers.

According to a press release issued on Wednesday afternoon by the Central Office for Combating Corruption (GCCC), and quoted by "Carta", the three CEDSIF officials, in collusion with the owner of the company contracted by the institution, attested to the receipt of the object of the contract, without, however, the supplier having provided what was proposed.

Specifically, explains the GCCC, the four cronies "fabricated a document, signing it as if the equipment had entered CEDSIF's warehouses, which turned out to be false". The press release from the Public Prosecutor's Office does not, however, say what the contract was for or when the events took place.

According to the GCCC, the scheme was uncovered following an internal investigation carried out by CEDSIF and subsequently reported to the institution, which instituted criminal proceedings, registered under no. 21/114/P/GCCC/2022, in which five defendants were constituted, including four natural persons (employees and the businessman) and one legal person (the company).

In its statement, the GCCC said that the five defendants are strongly suspected of committing the crimes of passive corruption for an illegal act; active corruption; abuse of office or function; embezzlement; economic participation in business; and use of a false document.

It should be noted that this is not the first case of theft to be recorded at CEDSIF. Between January 2016 and January 2020, the institution suffered a theft of 155 million meticais, and those involved were sentenced to 11 and 10 years in prison in October 2020. In 2015, CEDSIF was robbed of 15 million meticais. In 2018, it was again robbed of nearly 5 million meticais. (Letter)