Libya’s Public Prosecution has ordered the pre-trial detention of an employee working in the Information Technology and Documentation Department of the Civil Registry Authority, after investigations confirmed his involvement in forging official records that enabled foreigners to unlawfully obtain Libyan national identification numbers.
In a statement, the Office of the Attorney General said investigators from the Gharyan Attorney General’s Office pursued reports of tampering with civil status records and uncovered evidence showing the employee had breached his duty of trust. Prosecutors concluded that the suspect failed to safeguard the integrity of the authority’s databases, allowing manipulation that undermined core foundations of Libyan society.
According to the statement, the investigations proved that the accused deliberately altered official databases to insert false family records. This manipulation allowed foreign nationals to obtain Libyan national numbers and, in turn, access rights and benefits reserved under Libyan law exclusively for citizens.
The prosecution detailed the scope of the forgery, revealing that 24 fabricated family records were added to the civil registry office in Ghadames. These entries enabled around 200 foreigners to secure national identification numbers. In addition, four fraudulent family records were inserted into the records of the Sinawan service office, resulting in 35 foreigners obtaining national numbers.
Further violations were documented in other regions. Two forged family records were entered into the civil registry of Al-Shu‘a‘wa, leading to 15 foreigners receiving national numbers. Another two false family records were added to the Matras civil registry office, enabling 19 foreigners to obtain national identification.
Following the completion of preliminary inquiries and after confronting the suspect with the accumulated evidence, prosecutors ordered his detention pending further investigation. The Public Prosecution also instructed the suspension of 269 national numbers issued on the basis of the forged records, along with halting the legal effect of all related administrative documents.
The statement added that authorities are continuing to trace any material benefits obtained through the acts of forgery, as part of broader efforts to combat corruption, protect civil status data, and preserve the integrity of Libyan citizenship records.
