1 of 5 | Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the detained civilian leader of Myanmar, was charged with corruption on Thursday. Photo by Diego Azubel/EPA-EFE
June 10 (UPI) -- The military junta of Myanmar on Thursday formally charged Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the country's detained civilian leader, with corruption along with three other officials ousted in the February coup.
The military regime of armed forces Commander-in-Chief Min Aung Hlaing announced the charges on the ministry of information's website, stating the Anti-Corruption Commission said it had inspected the case against Suu Kyi and found her "guilty of committing corruption using her rank," a charge that comes with a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison, Bloomberg reported.
The government accused Suu Kyi of misusing her authority when she rented a building for her Daw Khin Kyi Foundation incurring state losses of more than $3 million, and that she separately accepted $600,000 in cash as well as gold from a regional chief minister while in office.
Khin Maung Zaw, her lawyer, told CNN that the case was "absurd."
"I've never met any statesman more honest and incorruptible as Daw Aung San Suu Kyi," he said. "She might have defects but personal greed and corruption is not her traits. Those who accuse her with greed and corruption are spitting toward the sky."
The military junta detained Suu Kyi on Feb.1 along with President U Win Myint and other party members, lawmakers and Cabinet officials in the early morning coup, and declared itself the State Administrative Council, sparking nationwide dissent and protests.
Suu Kyi has already been charged with violating the Official Secrets Act and a COVID-19 disaster management law, among several others.
According to the Myanmar's Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, as of Wednesday night a total of 858 people have been killed since the coup with an additional 5,941 people having been arrested.
