The Parisian court of appeals held a hearing on Tuesday as part of the continuing investigation against Lebanon's embattled central bank governor Riad Salameh to examine the freezing of assets that he and his relatives are suspected to have acquired through massive embezzlement from the institution.
"We are pleading today, [in chambers]. The case will then be taken under advisement," said Pierre Olivier Sur, Mr Salameh's lawyer in France.
The prosecutor's media office confirmed to The National that the hearing was held at 2pm local time, but declined to provide further details, citing an obligation to maintain the "secrecy" of the continuing investigation.
The court's decision on whether or not to accept the defendants' bid to release their frozen assets in Europe is set to be issued in the next few weeks,
Mr Salemeh is facing investigations in six European countries, namely France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, Germany and Switzerland.
The stakes are high: the assets in question could be sold and the proceeds returned to Lebanon, in the event Mr Salameh is convicted and it is proven he used public funds for personal gain.
To that end, in March, Lebanon lodged a civil complaint against Mr Salameh in France and became a civil party in the case, in a bid to claim these assets as an injured party.
The lawyer representing the Lebanese state was present at the hearing, according to a source familiar with the matter.
The move was contested by the defendant's side. "We are considering a criminal complaint against the state's civil action for forgery and attempted fraud, because it lacks the ministerial signature that would authenticate its validity," Mr Sur told the National in an email after the hearing.
Mr Salameh is suspected of having embezzled more than $330 million from Lebanon's central bank with the help of his brother, Raja Salameh, and used the proceeds to purchase luxurious properties across Europe.
Mr Salameh has consistently denied any wrongdoing since the cases were opened.
Most of his assets, which consist of real estate and banking assets worth more than a hundred million dollars across Europe, were frozen last year following a major operation against money laundering in Lebanon.
This was carried out as part of a joint probe led by French, German and Luxembourg judicial authorities, resulting in the seizing of assets valued at 120 million euros ($130 million) belonging to the governor and four of his relatives.
Anna Kosakova, his romantic partner, was indicted by French judge Aude Buresi in July for criminal conspiracy, organised money laundering and aggravated tax fraud laundering.
The move came as part of the investigation opened in France, where she owns at least €14.3 million worth of property, now all seized, according to judicial documents seen by the National.
"The seizure orders issued by the investigating judge are extremely well justified. Requests for the lifting of the seizure are reduced to a rearguard battle and a communication operation", said William Bourdon, the lawyer for the two civil parties, the Collective Association of Victims of Fraudulent and Criminal Practices in Lebanon, a group of depositors whose savings are trapped in Lebanese banks, and Sherpa, an anti-financial crime NGO in France.
