Tangier Mayor Mounir Laymouri was placed in police custody on Monday, September 28, on the orders of the King’s Prosecutor General at the Tangier Court of Appeal, after more than seven hours of questioning at the prefectural police headquarters.
Laymouri, who was arrested on Monday upon his return from Malaga, was placed in police custody as part of an investigation into electoral documents seized at Al Qods School. He had been the subject of a national wanted notice in connection with the investigation into the electoral documents discovered at the school.
“Contrary to the false insinuations, I have nothing to do with this case and I did not flee Morocco. I am supposed to return to Tangier on Monday after a professional trip to Spain,” he told Le360 on Sunday, September 27.
The case dates back to election day, when allegedly irregular electoral documents were discovered at a polling station set up at Al Qods School in the Casabarata district. A video showing the incident quickly circulated on social media, sparking widespread controversy.
Investigations conducted under the supervision of the public prosecution have since led to the arrest of five suspects, including the presidents of two polling stations, their two deputies and a fifth individual.
Four were brought before the public prosecution, while the fifth remained in police custody for the purposes of the investigation.
Read also : ‘I did not flee’: Tangier mayor says he will return Monday as vote probe awaits
The public prosecution also referred the case to the investigating judge to open a judicial investigation, notably over alleged interference with electoral operations and forgery.
It was during these investigations that the name of Mounir Laymouri, who also headed the PAM’s election campaign in Tangier, emerged in the case.
According to an authorized source, one of those implicated mentioned Laymouri during questioning. Judicial police officers then went to the mayor’s home to question him and arrange a confrontation with the suspect, who is also a PAM member.
Investigators subsequently found that Mounir Laymouri had left the country on Thursday evening for Spain and a national wanted notice was then issued against him.
The mayor, however, maintains that the trip was solely for professional reasons and denies any intention of evading the investigation.
