Widow appeals as court returns Gaddafi £80m to Libya
COLONEL Gaddafi’s widow is challenging a court order to return to Libya £80million stashed in a bank by the late dictator’s son.
Safiya Ferkash Mohammed is appealing on technical grounds that the Maltese court which ordered the transfer lacked jurisdiction in the case of funds deposited in the Bank of Valletta.
The legal battle started in 2012, a year after Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown and killed by Libyan rebels. His son Mutassim, also killed, had Bank of Valletta credit cards and this tipped off the new regime to the £80million hoard.
Gaddafi’s widow claims the cash, held by a company called Capital Resources Limited, is private family money, but the Libyan government views it as illicit booty from her late husband’s 34-year tyranny.
The Maltese court backed Libya’s argument that as an army officer, Mutassim was not allowed to draw benefits from business interests. No date for an appeal has yet been set.