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An Algerian prosecutor on Monday asked that a businessman linked to ousted ruler Abdelaziz Bouteflika be sentenced to 18 months in prison for "falsifying," according to an AFP correspondent.
Ali Haddad, owner of Algeria's largest privately-owned construction company, has been detained since his arrest on March 31 as he was attempting to travel to Tunisia a few days before Bouteflika withdrew from demonstrations at the national level.
He was carrying two pbadports – which is prohibited by Algerian law – and is also accused of having undeclared foreign currency.
"It is a political trial, the accusation of fraud has no (legal) basis," Khaled Bourayou, Haddad 's attorney, told reporters.
Speaking with an almost inaudible voice, Haddad denied any falsification and said that he had obtained his second pbadport "legally" after looking for an interview with then Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal.
Hbadane Boualem, then director of titles and documents secured at the Ministry of the Interior, appeared Monday in the court of Haddad, accused of issuing the second pbadport in 2016.
The prosecutor asked Haddad 18 months in prison and 100,000 dinars (750 euros, 840 dollars), adding that Algerian law prohibited the possession of "more than one title or travel document of the same nature".
He also asked Boualem to have the same penalty for issuing the pbadport "without administrative record".
Haddad is also under investigation for alleged corruption, his lawyer added.
Described by Forbes as one of the wealthiest entrepreneurs in Algeria, Haddad would have widely used his ties with Bouteflika to build his business empire.
The verdicts are expected June 17, announced the court.
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