18th October, 2014
Former Malawi budget director Paul Mphwiyo and his wife were on Saturday arrested on charges of theft, money laundering and obstructing the course of justice, the Anti-Corruption Bureau said.
The arrest was related to the so-called “Cashgate” scandal — in which some $30 million was stolen from state coffers — bureau spokesperson Egritta Ndal said.
The scam prompted foreign donors, who provide around 40 percent of Malawi’s budget, to pull the plug on aid of around $150 million (118 million euros) last year.
It is the biggest financial scandal in Malawi’s history, and helped push former president Joyce Banda out of power in May elections, which were won by Peter Mutharika.
A number of government officials implicated in the fraud are facing criminal charges, and a first official was jailed last month for three years over the scandal.