GENEVA, Feb 20 – Ousted Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak and his entourage have assets in Switzerland worth tens of millions of dollars (euros), the Swiss foreign ministry said Sunday.
Switzerland on February 11 froze the assets of Mubarak and his entourage barely two hours after the former president stepped down following mass protests against his rule.
Since then, the country\’s foreign ministry has received notifications from financial institutions "concerning amounts pertaining to tens of millions of (Swiss) francs," foreign ministry spokesman Stefan von Below said, adding that the amount could rise.
One Swiss franc is equivalent to about one US dollar or 77 euro cents.
"With this order, financial intermediaries such as bank and insurance companies are obliged to determine if they hold funds belonging to these people," Below said.
"If they find any, they are required to inform us," he said.
"We do not yet know if these funds are legitimate or not," he said, adding "the competent judicial bodies will decide who are the entitled parties" if the funds were obtained illegally.
Twelve people were hit by the asset freeze, including Mubarak\’s immediate family members as well as four ministers.
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