Geneva
French-Israeli diamond magnate Beny Steinmetz went on trial in Geneva on Monday over allegations of corruption linked to mining deals in Guinea, after a drawn-out international investigation.
Steinmetz, who travelled from Israel to take part in the two-week trial, has denied wrongdoing in the case, which involves allegations of multi-million-dollar bribes paid to top Guinean officials to win lucrative mining rights. The 64-year-old businessman, who made his fortune in diamonds, faces charges of corrupting public officials and forging documents following a six-year inquiry.
The trial participants are separated by plexiglass barriers due to the coronavirus pandemic, with Steinmetz and his lawyer Marc Bonnant allowed to share the same space.
“We will plead his innocence,” Bonnant told AFP last week. Swiss prosecutors accuse Steinmetz and two partners of bribing a wife of former Guinean president Lansana Conte and others in order to win mining rights in the southeastern Simandou region.—Agencies
