Anti-corruption court sentences sitting lawmaker to two years for blackmail

BAGHDAD — Iraq’s Federal Commission of Integrity announced Thursday that the Central Anti-Corruption Criminal Court sentenced sitting lawmaker Hasnain Qasim Mohammed al-Khafaji to two years in prison after convicting him of blackmail.

According to the commission, the court found Khafaji guilty of blackmailing complainant Mustafa Faal Mushtat by demanding $500,000 and a 40% stake in the Hawraa Baghdad residential project, to be registered in the name of one of his office employees.

The commission said Khafaji promised to intervene with the Supreme Judicial Council and the Federal Commission of Integrity to close a case involving alleged illicit wealth and lift the freeze on the complainant’s assets. It said he also claimed he could intervene with the Baghdad Investment Commission to allow work to resume on the Jawharat Baghdad residential project, despite having no legal authority to do so.

The commission said the court based its conviction on multiple pieces of evidence, including the confession of co-defendant Anwar Sabah Abdul Sadiq, transcripts of audio recordings, witness testimony and a copy of the contract related to the case.

After reviewing the evidence, the court found it sufficient to convict Khafaji and sentenced him to two years in prison under Article 452(1) of the Iraqi Penal Code, the commission said.

The ruling follows an earlier request by Iraq’s judiciary in June to lift Khafaji’s parliamentary immunity to allow legal proceedings to move forward.

According to an official letter issued at the time by the Baghdad Karkh Court of Appeals, investigators accused Khafaji of demanding that the complainant transfer a 40% stake in the Hawraa Baghdad residential project and pay $500,000 in exchange for intervening to close legal proceedings and facilitate administrative approvals. The letter said the allegations were supported by audio recordings attributed to Khafaji and the confession of one of his office employees.

The verdict comes a week after the Federal Commission of Integrity announced that another sitting lawmaker, Mohammed Nasser Dali al-Karbouli, had been sentenced to two years in prison for soliciting a $50,000 bribe in exchange for intervening to close investigative committees against a school principal and help him remain in his position. Authorities said the conviction formed part of Iraq’s broader anti-corruption campaign targeting public officials and political figures.