Marjan Al Agha and the Biggest Embezzlement in History

Marjan Al Agha and the biggest embezzlement in history

According to Iran Gate, Marjan Al Agha is the prime suspect in the case of the biggest embezzlement in Iran’s history. This case is one of the most complex economic corruption cases. Al Agha is involved in major embezzlement cases in the petrochemical industry, as well as financial corruption in the oil and gas sector, with direct coordination from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hamid Baghaei. The total embezzlement amounts to over 7 billion dollars.

The case of Marjan Sheikh Al-Islami Al Agha is a clear example of the abuses of sanctions by the merchants and the destructive foreign policy adopted by the Islamic Republic. This case not only shows evidence of corruption among government officials, but also exposes the corrupt opposition to the public and public opinion.

In 2017, at the same time as the increased investigations into the economic corruption of the Ahmadinejad government, Marjan Agha leaves the country for Turkey. After a short period, she leaves Turkey and relocates to Canada. It is said that Marjan Agha currently resides in Canada and the United States, and has separated from her second spouse, Mehdi Khalaji.

Iran Gate has addressed the investigation of Marjan Al-Agha’s economic misconduct in this report. However, in addition to the current report, the editorial team of Iran Gate is also preparing a report on Marjan Al-Agha’s political misconduct and unhealthy relationships. The following will focus on the examination of the economic corruption case and the largest embezzlement in the history of Iran.

Everything started with Sepanir

Marjan Sheikh Al-Islami Al-Agha’s involvement in the economic sector began in the midst of the 1980s with extensive oil and banking sanctions against Iran. She established companies in the field of oil and gas product exports, directly coordinated with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the then President of Iran, and Hamid Baghaei, Ahmadinejad’s executive deputy. It is worth mentioning that Baghaei also served as the head of the Cultural Heritage and Tourism Organization during the years 2009 to 2011, which had direct connections with Marjan Al-Agha.

Al Agha has used this direct connection with the leaders of the ninth and tenth governments and has taken on major projects from Sepanir Company, one of the subsidiaries of Sepah Khatam al-Anbia. Through this, he gains access to a wide range of oil and gas production in the country by taking advantage of the lack of transparency resulting from banking and oil sanctions in the transportation of oil and gas exports, and transfers significant amounts to his personal accounts in mainly Chinese banks.

On the other hand, he has also obtained significant foreign exchange resources through Sepanir to import essential goods into the country. However, according to the statements of the prosecutor in the 700-page case against Al Agha and Hamzeh Louvi, they have not imported any goods into the country despite receiving these foreign exchange resources.

Financial rivalry between Marjan Al Agha and Reza Hamzeh Louvi

The name of Marjan Sheikh al-Islami Aqa has been heard in many cases of economic misconduct, but the most important of these cases is related to a major embezzlement in the Petrochemical Trading Company. Mrs. Aqa’s name has been mentioned multiple times in this case as the CEO of Deniz and Hetera Trading Company. Although 14 individuals have been accused in the corruption case of the Petrochemical Trading Company, Marjan Aqa has been the most prominent figure and identified as the second defendant in the case.

Aqa was accused in February 2019 of participating in disrupting the economic system, equivalent to 318 billion and 637 million tomans. Additionally, among the other charges in this case, she was accused of illicitly acquiring assets worth 7 million and 65 thousand euros and 8 million and 710 thousand dollars.

Marjan Aqa, with the collaboration of Reza Hamzehlu, the former CEO of Petrochemical Investment Company and the first defendant in this case, has engaged in large-scale embezzlements through foreign currency transfers carried out for the purpose of exporting petrochemical products.

Hamzehlu, who was appointed as the CEO of the Petrochemical Trading Company in 2009, but after a very short period, he disappeared as a member of the board of directors of Sigma Investment Company, the Cultural Heritage and Tourism Investment Company of Iran.

This collaboration, which has taken shape in the shadow of sanctions and the opaque environment resulting from it, has generally expanded as a profitable business of the sanctions against the Iranian people. The prosecutor of the case emphasized in 2018 that the illicit funds in this case were transferred through unsecured currency transfers and heavy deposits between various accounts. Of course, most of these financial transactions were carried out through Chinese banks in Shanghai, which complicates the matter.

It is for this reason that it is said that this case bears a great resemblance to the Babak Zanjani case, but the difference is that Babak Zanjani was trapped inside the country, while Al Agha left Iran as soon as he sensed danger, never to return.

According to information released from the case and the prosecutor’s statements, Reza Hamzehlou and Marjan Al Agha transferred substantial amounts to a company account named Deniz Matel in Turkey. This amount, estimated to be around 660 million euros, was the money obtained from the export of the country’s petrochemical products, which could not be directly transferred to the country due to the sanctions.

It is said that Al Agha and Hamzeh Lu have only transferred 350 million euros of this money into the country and delivered it to the Petrochemical Trading Company as the currency resulting from the export of petrochemical products. Therefore, these two partners and accomplices in economic crimes transfer an amount equivalent to over 300 million euros to their other accounts in Chinese banks in only one case.

The second report in the series of investigations into the corruption case of Marjan Sheikh Al-Islami Al Agha has delved into his destructive activities outside the country.