PiS motions for inquiry commission into Amber Gold fraud
The Law and Justice (PiS) parliamentary caucus has motioned for an inquiry commission into the Amber Gold fraud, Sejm (lower house) deputy Speaker Ryszard Terlecki announced on Tuesday.
The first reading of a draft resolution is planned for Wednesday. The commission is to be led by Malgorzata Wassermann (PiS).
According to Terlecki, the commission will start working before the parliamentary summer holidays. He stressed that it was necessary to set up an inquiry commission "to answer why public institutions had not launched any proceedings into operations conducted by Amber Gold for nearly three years."
The trial of a couple accused of fraud and money laundering in the years 2009-2012, when they ran the Amber Gold shadow bank, started in Gdansk (northern Poland) in March. They are charged with cheating some 18,000 people out of savings worth around PLN 850 million.
The Amber Gold shadow bank, which proved to be a pyramid scheme, was to invest clients' money in gold and other precious metals. If convicted, the pair could face prison terms of up to 15 years. (PAP)
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