Libyan Former Telecom Officials Detained Over Alleged LD 426 Million Mismanagement

Libya’s Attorney General’s Office said yesterday that the Public Prosecution has ordered the pretrial detention of a former Director General of Libyana Mobile Phone Company and the company’s former Commercial Department official.

The action is part of broader initiatives to improve accountability in Libya’s telecom sector following years of instability.

Investigation Findings

The Public Prosecution examined Libyana’s financial activities during 2023 and 2024 and found that the two officials had deviated from the public interest.

Contractual Irregularities

They authorised a contract with a firm to market prepaid cards, initially setting the commission at 4 percent of sales value and later raising it to 10 percent for the contractor’s benefit without any factual or legal justification.

Similarly, they approved a contract for an electronic top-up service, beginning with a 4 percent fee on the service’s revenue and subsequently increasing it to 15 percent of the total financial revenue for the contractor, again lacking any factual or legal basis.

Quantified Losses and Asset Purchase

A review conducted by the Public Prosecution to measure the financial loss to public funds showed that the first contractor obtained illicit gains of 127 million Libyan dinars and the second contractor obtained illicit gains of 299 million Libyan dinars.

The investigation also established that the officials had authorised the purchase of a property for 120 million dinars in breach of the company’s budget management regulations.

Legal Status

Consequently, the Public Prosecution ordered the accused to be held in pretrial detention pending further investigation.