Some $1.9 million worth of computers provided by the US government and meant for Iraqi schoolchildren were stolen by an Iraqi official in the southern port city of Umm Qasr and auctioned off, according to the US Army.
The Army’s report says that the unnamed “senior official” absconded with the computers and auctioned them off on August 16. He managed to get only $45,700 out of the computers, according to records.
The computers were in sealed containers and US officials were planning to coordinate their delivery to schools in Babil Province earlier this week, but they discovered that the computers were already stolen and sold off. The Army is calling for an investigation into the official who stole them.
Though it pales in comparison to corruption in America’s other occupied territory of Afghanistan, corruption in Iraq is also among the worst in the world, ranking 176 out of 180 according to a recent report.
