Dakar mayor held over alleged fraud

Dakar mayor held over alleged fraud

Posted at 10:58

AFP

Mr Sall has been seen as a possible contender in Senegal's 2019 presidential election

The mayor of the Senegalese capital, Dakar, has been placed in custody over alleged fraud, BBC Afrique reports. 
Khalifa Sall was charged with embezzling 1.38bn CFA francs ($2.85m; £2.34m) in city funds. 
The mayor denies any wrongdoing. His lawyers described the arrest as politically motivated, saying in a statement: 

This arrest and detention is only to stop Khalifa Sall in his political ambitions."

Mr Sall is a maverick member of the Socialist Party and has been considered a possible contender for the 2019 presidential election. 
He has been mayor of Dakar since 2009.