Nephew of Polisario militia 'leader' arrested in Panama with undeclared $65,000

Panama customs arrested a Polisario member with USD 65,000 on May 11, undeclared at the Tocumen International Airport.

Local media initially reported that a “Sahrawi citizen” arrived in Panama aboard a flight from Cuba without revealing his identity, and that he did not mention in his declaration to customs controllers he was in possession of “an important sum of money in his luggage.”

The Forum of Support to the Autonomists of Tindouf (FORSATIN) reports that the detainee is Tahar Ould Akeik, “nephew of Mohamed El Ouali Akeik,” who was appointed in November 2021 as the leader of the separatist Polisario armed militia.

At the request of the prosecutor’s office, the suspect was remanded in custody, and his $65,000 seized, with his the trial date set for June 9.

According to FORSATIN, “Algerian authorities and the ambassador of the Polisario Front in Cuba, intervened with a series of political figures, in order to cover up the name of the accused, to only mention his nationality.”

The forum stated that the accused “is a member of an international network affiliated to the Polisario Front, active in the black market and money smuggling, and owns an unlicensed trading company, active in import and export between China, Panama and Cuba, and has branches in the Tindouf camps.”

Considering some Latin American governments do acknowledge the separatist front as a “legitimate” entity, countries such as Panama and Equator do serve as a playground for the front’s activities, fueled by detainees’ ressources.

Recently, Polisario’s “Minister of Foreign Affairs” Mohamed Salem Ould Salek’s son had inaugurated a new clinic in Ecuador, while he already had one in Panama.

FORSATIN accused Ould Salek of having financed the clinic through the embezzlement of humanitarian aid intended for the population of the Tindouf camps.

However, the Polisario’s corruption, embezzlement and theft has recently stirred outrage in the camps, as tensions brewed after  Sahrawis continued to witness the lawlessness, corruption and injustice perpetrated by the separatist movement’s kingpins.

A tribe within the camps, where freedom of movement is strictly forbidden, has risen up against the separatist front, in protest of rampant corruption this month.

The Labehat tribe’s insurrection led to the arrest of 11 people, while calls for accountability continue to dominate.