The magistrate selected to judge the autonomous case of undeclared debts (Hidden Debts) brought against the former Finance Minister, Manuel Chang, is César Zunguze, from the 8th Section of the Maputo City Judicial Court.

In addition to Chang, the case includes three former senior managers of the Bank of Mozambique (BM) indicted for involvement in the fraud of around 2.7 billion dollars.

According to the daily newspaper Notícias, which cites a source close to the matter, the date for the trial has not yet been set, and for now Zunguze is familiarizing himself with the documents in the case.

In the case, number 536/P/2019, Chang is accused of committing the crimes of violation of budgetary legality, passive corruption for an illegal act, abuse of office or function, association to commit crime, embezzlement and money laundering.

The three former BM managers are accused of abuse of office or function for having authorized the payment of the debts without observing legal procedures.

As a result of the investigations in the autonomous case, the Public Prosecutor's Office has already recovered seven million dollars and 62.1 million meticais in cash, as well as a property purchased for 850,000 dollars in Maputo city.

Manuel Chang has been detained in South Africa since December 2018, following a search and arrest warrant issued by the United States.