Inmate accused of impersonating airport officer, running extortion scheme from Baghdad prison

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Federal Commission of Integrity said Wednesday it had identified a man accused of impersonating an officer at Baghdad International Airport while conducting a blackmail operation from inside prison, where he is serving a sentence for theft.

The commission said in a statement that a suspect was found to be posing as an airport officer and carrying out extortion activities. A team from the Baghdad Investigations Directorate was formed to follow up on reports of the impersonator, and the man was located at an Iraqi Correctional Department facility, where he was already serving a theft conviction.

The operation was conducted under a judicial warrant and in coordination with the National Security Service, with oversight from a judge at the Central Anti-Corruption Criminal Court.

An official report was prepared documenting the evidence, and the suspect was referred to the investigative judge, who ordered him held pending further inquiry.

The case comes amid broader efforts to crack down on impersonation and fraud schemes. Earlier this month, the National Security Service arrested three individuals in Diwaniyah and Diyala accused of posing as agency officers and defrauding citizens by promising fake government job appointments in exchange for money.

Authorities also shut down an unlicensed cosmetic clinic in Najaf in May, where two individuals were arrested — one of them accused of falsely claiming to be a cosmetic specialist.