Iraqi Anti-Corruption Probe Targets Current and Former Diwaniyah Officials

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Iraq's Federal Commission of Integrity announced Thursday that it has dismantled what it described as a large-scale corruption network operating within the Diwaniyah Municipality Department, marking one of the country's most significant recent anti-corruption operations and widening an investigation that now implicates senior current and former municipal officials.

According to the Commission, investigative judges have issued arrest warrants and search orders for 30 suspects, including the municipality's current director, five former directors, government employees, and private contractors allegedly involved in a scheme that exploited public contracts and diverted state resources.

In its statement, the Commission said the investigation uncovered allegations involving contract manipulation, embezzlement of public funds, bribery, inflated procurement costs, and other financial violations that resulted in what it described as the extensive waste of public money.

Rather than focusing on isolated incidents, investigators concluded that the alleged misconduct reflected a coordinated network operating across multiple administrative functions within the municipality.

The Commission said the operation was carried out in coordination with the Falcons Intelligence Cell, whose support formed part of a broader effort to identify those allegedly involved and trace the financial activities linked to municipal projects.

The inquiry has already resulted in the arrest of 15 municipal employees and three contractors. According to the Commission, the contractors are suspected of supplying materials to the municipality at prices significantly above market value or receiving payments for projects that investigators allege were never carried out.

Authorities said statements obtained from those already in custody enabled investigators to broaden the case, leading to judicial action against additional officials. Those developments prompted warrants for the municipality's current director and five former directors, while several senior officials have already appeared before an investigative judge to provide testimony.

The Commission added that specialized teams continue efforts to locate and apprehend the remaining suspects named in the investigation.

Investigators also reported recovering substantial documentary and physical evidence during the operation. Among the materials seized were financial disbursement records valued at more than 9 billion Iraqi dinars, documents expected to play a central role in examining the movement of public funds and the administration of municipal contracts.

Authorities further confiscated forged official seals attributed to several municipal departments, including financial auditing, accounting, procurement committees, and the parks department, according to the Commission.

In addition to documentary evidence, raids resulted in the seizure of several luxury vehicles and significant amounts of cash, items investigators believe may be connected to the alleged financial crimes under examination.

The Commission said investigative judges specializing in integrity cases have ordered the detention of suspects under Articles 315, 319, and 340 of the Iraqi Penal Code. The judiciary has also imposed international travel bans on several members of the Diwaniyah Provincial Council identified during the investigation as having alleged links to individuals named in the case.

The operation represents one of Iraq's most extensive recent municipal corruption investigations, reflecting the Commission's continuing efforts to pursue complex financial crime cases involving public institutions while expanding judicial scrutiny of alleged misuse of government resources.