The Case of Arresting Bank Debtors is 'On the Agenda' of Iran's Criminal Investigation Police

One day after the news of the arrest of one of the largest bank debtors in the country was published, the head of Iran's Criminal Investigation Police warned that the case of detaining other bank debtors is also on the agenda of this force. Mohammad Kazem Chaghazardi, the CEO of Bank Sepah of Iran, announced the arrest of one of the largest debtors of this bank, whose debt amounted to 150 billion tomans. According to the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA), on Wednesday, August 4, the CEO of Bank Sepah provided details about the arrest of this bank debtor, stating: 'This debtor, who had obtained a significant portion of the aforementioned funds unlawfully and had been evading the law since 2007, has been captured.' Several websites and media outlets in Iran have referred to the arrested individual as the 'largest bank debtor,' but banking officials and police authorities have not used such a title to describe the arrested person. According to Mohammad Kazem Chaghazardi, this bank debtor was arrested 'based on a criminal complaint regarding the unlawful acquisition of property and issuing worthless checks in the Economic Court and the Judiciary of Qazvin County.' The name of this bank debtor has not been disclosed in related reports and news, and only the Tasnim news agency has referred to him by the initials 'H.D.' On Thursday, August 5, Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Moqimi, speaking to reporters, referred to the success of the Criminal Investigation Police in arresting one of the largest bank debtors in the country, stating: 'One of the actions of the Criminal Investigation Police is combating economic crimes and pursuing the arrest of major bank debtors. Therefore, multiple meetings have been held with the legal heads of banks over the years, and a list of names of billion-dollar debtors of the country's banks has been prepared and organized.' As explained by the head of the Criminal Investigation Police, the 150 billion tomans debt of the arrested individual includes both the principal debt and late payment penalties. According to Brigadier General Moqimi, 'the debtor was a fugitive but had not left the country and was identified and arrested through the intelligence monitoring of police commanders.' He also responded to the question of whether the arrested individual had forged documents or colluded to obtain large loans from the bank or had accomplices, stating: 'This individual had no relatives, and the bank must explain how and for what purpose the loans were obtained.' The head of the Criminal Investigation Police also announced that several other cases regarding the arrest of bank debtors are on the agenda of the Criminal Investigation Police. This police official added: 'Many debtors have settled their accounts after the police's definitive presence in financial cases, but if other debtors do not settle their accounts, the Criminal Investigation Police is prepared to enter these cases and identify and arrest the suspects.' The banks' overdue claims and the unprecedented increase in bank debts in recent years are among the reasons for the banking network's inability to finance production and other economic sectors to exit recession. According to a report from the Central Bank summarizing the assets and liabilities of commercial banks, the amount of debt of the public sector, including the government and state-owned companies and institutions, to banks reached approximately 122 trillion tomans at the end of May 2016. By the end of May this year, the total debts of the private sector to the banking network also exceeded 750 trillion tomans. Based on this report, the total debts to the banking network in the second month of this year reached approximately 880 trillion tomans.