A senior Jordanian government official has been charged with bribery, reported the Jordan Times, quoting judicial sources.
They said the Anti-Corruption Unit unveiled the case five days ago and referred the accused to the Amman Criminal Court, said the paper.
The sources would neither reveal the name of the official in question nor the ministry where he was employed.
"ACU personnel busted the suspect as he was about to receive JD8,000 as part of a JD15,000 bribe," one of the sources said.
He said the accused allegedly demanded the bribe as a condition for his disbursing overdue payments from the Treasury to local contractors.
The ACU acted on a tip by the contractor, who had complained that the official demanded a bribe in return for releasing JD155.000 in overdue payments to the contractors, added the paper.
The ACU arranged a string operation, catching the official off-guard, in possession of the alleged bribe placed inside a plastic bag, the source added.
It was the first corruption bust since a government-led anti corruption committee convened for the first time last week under the chairmanship of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice Faris Nabulsi - Albawaba.com
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
