Zanjani said he ‘was not alone’: Iranian MP

TEHRAN - Doğan News Agency

Babak Zanjani, an alleged partner of the Iranian-origin businessman and gold dealer Reza Zarrab, who is the prime suspect in Turkey’s ongoing high-level graft probe, has reportedly “confessed he was not alone.”

Iranian member of Parliament Amir Abbas Soltani, who is a member of the investigation committee in Parliament, said Zanjani “confessed” under arrest that he “was working under the auspices of a large group.”

While Soltani declined to reveal the identities of Zanjani’s alleged accomplices, Izetullah Yusufian, another member of the Iranian Parliament, has claimed the businessman already smuggled all his cash abroad.

Currently the head of the Sorinet Group, Zanjani was arrested Dec. 31, 2013, following a call from Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Iranian authorities to speed up the investigation, two weeks after the massive graft probe was launched in Turkey, implicating Zarrab.

Zanjani’s ties to former vice-President Mohammed Reza Rahimi, who was considered former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s top aide, are also being investigated. Iranian authorities had announced they’ll send a special delegation to three countries, including Turkey, for the probe.