CRIET: a woman, her partner and two accomplices tried for making fake seals
The Court for the Repression of Economic Offences and Terrorism (CRIET) began, on Tuesday, September 9, 2025 during the vacation hearings, examining a case involving four people suspected of forging stamps to authenticate vaccination documents intended for travel.
According to the prosecution, the main suspect, a woman residing in Kuwait, returned to Benin to obtain travel documents for her daughter’s trip to that same Middle Eastern country.
Having not obtained an authentic stamp in time, she allegedly commissioned her go-to man, familiar with administrative procedures and the difficulties associated with travel documents, to make forged stamps from a clinic to certify false vaccination records, Banouto reported.
On the stand, the woman, a mother of four, denied any direct involvement in ordering the stamps. However, she admitted asking her go-to man for vaccination documents, without specifying their exact nature.
“To obtain a vaccination document, don’t you have to see a doctor?” the presiding judge asked her. She answered “yes,” before admitting that she had not taken her daughter to a medical professional, which highlights the illegality of the action.
Her go-to man, also heard, admitted making the stamps, without knowing their precise use. He told the Court that he did not know if the woman worked at the clinic in question, but under pressure acknowledged that she was not employed there.
Two other individuals are involved: the woman’s boyfriend and an intermediary tasked with finding the right supplier to produce the stamps. The printer, accustomed to producing banners and visuals, said he made four stamps: two intended for the clinic and two for the CNHU hospital in return for a fee of 45,000 FCFA.
The boyfriend, for his part, said he was arrested in Godomey, at the scene of his home with the woman. He denies being aware of the steps taken, and explains the presence of documents from the association of Beninese residents in Kuwait (which he chaired during his stay in that country) found at his home.
The hearing was adjourned to December 9, 2025, when the public prosecutor will present its submissions and the lawyers will make their pleas.
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