Morocco tax fraud trial postponed as lawyers strike

A trial in Fez, Morocco, against 12 defendants accused of tax fraud and forgery has been postponed because their lawyers are on strike. The strike is a protest against a proposed law concerning the legal profession. The accused include the president of the regional council of Taza, representing the National Rally of Independents party, along with contractors and other individuals.

The court session, held in the misdemeanor chamber of the Court of First Instance, saw the defendants insist on their right to legal representation. Faced with the absence of their defense, the judicial panel rescheduled the case for July 17 to allow lawyers to attend. The court also decided to summon the remaining witnesses and ensure the defendants are present in the courtroom, as per their request.

In a previous session, the court had issued preliminary rulings on requests for provisional release. Defendants Jamal.B, Abdelatif.G, Abdelatif.A, Mohamed.A.B, and Hicham.R were granted provisional release upon payment of a 30,000 dirham bail each. Jawad.B was released provisionally without bail, while the requests of other defendants were denied. The court also deferred the case for review of civil claims.

The prosecution has charged the main defendant with fraud, forgery of private and commercial documents, knowingly creating certificates containing false information, and tax fraud through the use of fictitious invoices. Charges against other defendants vary, including complicity in fraud, use of forged commercial documents, and presentation of false invoices. One defendant, Latifa.H, had previously been granted provisional release on a 30,000 dirham bail, provided she was not being held for other reasons.