2 Former BCCI Execs Freed From Jail

The last two former Bank of Credit & Commerce International executives held in prison in the United Arab Emirates have been released but must remain in the country, judicial sources said. They said Hassan Mahmoud Kazmi and Abdul-Hafeez Mohammed Ahmed were released from their Abu Dhabi jail on Wednesday after they completed six-year sentences. The two cannot leave the country pending appeals to the supreme court, the sources said. BCCI, founded in Luxembourg in 1972, was shut down worldwide by central banks in 1991 when evidence emerged of massive and widespread fraud. A UAE court last June acquitted two former BCCI executives, but upheld sentences against eight others--including Kazmi and Ahmed--saying they must pay $8.3 million in addition to the original in civil damages. The court also upheld prison sentences imposed on the eight, including Kazmi and Ahmed. The other six have completed their sentences but were prevented from leaving the UAE pending their appeals.