Report: Bank Robbery Cell Suspected of Plotting Attacks against Politicians, Officers

A Bank robbery network suspected of plotting attacks on two judges had a list to target several other politicians and officials, al-Joumhouria newspaper reported on Friday.

According to the report, the cell led by Mohammed al-Jouni was planning to assassinate Speaker Nabih Berri, Former Ministers Michel and Elias al-Murr, MPs George Adwan, Akram Shehayyeb, Nohad al-Mashnouq, Ahmed Fatfat, Mohammed Kabbara, Judges Abdul Rahim Hammoud, Henri Khoury, Dani el-Zaenni and former LBCI anchorwoman May Chidiac.

Mohammed al-Jouni, who was seized by armed forces following a string of bank robberies in the country, has admitted to preparing explosives to target Judges Hammoud and Khoury but security forces found a notebook among his possessions that included the names of the previously mentioned politicians, other officials, and Internal Security Forces and Army officers.

The daily said that the network was “waiting for the right time to carry out its plot under the cover of robbing banks.”

The members of the cell led by al-Jouni were identified as Mohammed Ayyoub, Najib Jabr, Issam Darwish, Maysam Hamadah, Shebli Hassan, Malak and Ali Hijazi.

Al-Jouni and Ayyoub were charged with forming an armed group and robbing several banks.

Al-Jouni was also charged with the possession of arms, buying explosives prepared by Darwish, forming a gang, and issuing checks without having sufficient funds.

The suspect admitted to paying Darwish $11,000 to prepare a bomb, who allegedly wanted to use if his house in Beirut's southern suburb of Burj al-Barajneh was raided.

However, he changed his plot when Darwish handed him three bombs and decided to target judges Hammoud and Khoury, who had issued a verdict to keep him locked in prison for a year and nine months for “an ordinary offense.”

Media reports previously revealed that the network has ties to al-Rmeileh terrorist cell whose members were arrested with a large cache of weapons.

In July, the army raided the residences of the Rmeileh suspects and seized 1,211 detonators, several electric-detonators, Israeli-made devices used to ignite mines, Russian and American-made anti-personnel mines, Israeli-made mortar shells, 21 hand grenades, weapons and other equipment.