National Social Security Fund files criminal complaint against sham firm

The National Social Security Fund’s Directorate of Public Relations stated in a press release that the Fund, fulfilling its core mandate as a health and social safety net, continues expanding coverage to include broader segments of the Lebanese population — most recently municipal workers, whose inclusion is now in its final parliamentary stages.

Crackdown on Fraudulent Registrations

The statement emphasized that widening coverage does not equate to leniency toward individuals or entities failing to meet legal eligibility criteria for benefits, nor tolerance of systemic manipulation designed to deplete the Fund’s financial and human resources at the expense of legitimate beneficiaries.

Under direct supervision of General Director Dr. Mohammad Karki, the Fund’s Inspection and Monitoring Directorate — deploying its full institutional apparatus and staff — maintains ongoing field surveillance and auditing operations to detect fraudulent enrollment and abuse by certain institutions and individuals falsely registered on Fund records.

Discovery of Phantom Entity and Employees

These inspections revealed that “Mohammad Aqil Slaughterhouse/Al-Minya” is a sham institution conducting no actual activity. Furthermore, all 25 employees registered under its name are fictitious. As a result, the institution was removed from the Fund’s registry retroactively from its initial registration date, and all 25 fictitious employees were likewise struck off the rolls.

Criminal Complaint Filed and Recovery Ordered

Dr. Karki instructed the Fund’s Legal Affairs Department to file a criminal complaint before Beirut’s Financial Public Prosecution against the institution itself and its responsible parties, Shawkat and Ra’fat Aqil, as well as against the 25 fictitious employees and any other individuals implicated during the investigation. The charges include embezzlement of Fund assets, use of forged documents, and fraud. The complaint was registered under number 1748 on 27/8/2026. Dr. Karki also directed the immediate recovery of all benefits improperly disbursed.

Dr. Karki affirmed that these oversight measures serve the dual objectives of ensuring the continuity of health benefits for legitimate insured persons and safeguarding Fund resources for proper, lawful deployment — underscoring that the Fund will not tolerate unauthorized exploitation of its services.