Shafaq News- Saladin

The Federal Integrity Commission, Iraq's independent anti-corruption body, said Tuesday it had arrested 21 people accused of running unauthorized tanker parking lots near the Baiji and Siniyah refineries.

Investigation teams from the Saladin office visited the relevant government departments and found no contract existed for the land being used as parking lots, while also establishing that a group had been charging tanker owners fees without legal basis and barring their trucks from entering the refinery if they refused to pay. Two coordinated stings were then set up at the lots in Siniyah and Baiji sub-districts of the Baiji district, leading to the arrests.

The investigators also seized 87,229,000 dinars ($66.6K) in cash, along with stamps, records, and receipt books used in the unlawful collection.

Read more: Corruption arrests in Iraq pass 210 under PM al-Zaidi