Gambiaj.com – (DAKAR, Senegal) – A major scandal has erupted in Touba, Senegal, after the branch manager of Coris Bank Touba 28, M. M. Mbacké, known as Mourtalla, was arrested for allegedly stealing from the bank account of Serigne Mountakha Mbacké, the revered Khalif General of the Mouride Muslim community—one of the most influential religious leaders in the country.
In a case that has stunned the religious and financial establishment, the 40-year-old bank director reportedly made three fraudulent withdrawals in March totaling 78 million CFA francs (about $127,000) from the Khalif’s personal account.
His scheme came to light during a failed fourth attempt on July 14, when he sent his half-brother, H. Mbacké, to cash a fraudulent cheque worth 58 million CFA francs (about $94,000) at another Coris Bank branch in Darou Marnane.
Suspicion was raised when the branch head at Darou Marnane, Mr. L. S., contacted Serigne Khadim Diop, the secretary general and account administrator for the Khalif, to verify the transaction.
Upon confirming it was unauthorized, Serigne Khadim Diop immediately informed Commissioner of police Diégane Sène, who dispatched police officers to the bank. H. Mbacké was arrested on the spot.
Under questioning, H. Mbacké admitted that he was acting under instructions from his half-brother, the Touba 28 branch manager.
Two days later, Mourtalla was summoned by investigators. Faced with mounting evidence, he confessed to orchestrating the series of thefts and using a taxi driver named K. to carry out the initial transactions earlier in March.
The scale and audacity of the crime have shocked the nation, not only because of the amount involved, but more so due to the sacred status of the victim.
Serigne Mountakha Mbacké is not just a public figure but the spiritual head of the Mouride Brotherhood, a deeply influential Sufi Islamic order with millions of followers in Senegal and abroad.
The fact that someone entrusted with a financial institution could betray one of the country’s most venerated leaders has sparked outrage and disbelief.
Both Mourtalla and his brother were formally referred to the Judicial and Financial Crimes Unit in Dakar on Thursday, where they face prosecution for embezzlement, fraud, and criminal conspiracy.
This brazen act of betrayal—targeting not just any individual but the spiritual pillar of an entire religious community—has raised serious concerns over internal controls in Senegal’s banking sector and the moral decay among those entrusted with public and private trust.
