THE Bank of Zambia (BoZ) has dispelled allegations that it ordered bank officials to withdraw huge amounts of cash from the bank to third parties.

Last Saturday, Police recovered over K65 million and over US$ 57,000 from Faith Musonda’s house, raising speculation about how such huge sums came into her possession.

In a statement, Thursday, BoZ assistant director for communications Besnat Mwanza said the Central Bank only got involved after the Zambia Police requested them to transport the money to their premises for safe keeping.

Mwanza stated that the money was found in travelling bags and that it necessitated the bank to use lockable and sealable trunks to safely transport it from Musonda’s house.

“The Bank of Zambia has noted with concern allegations circulating in some sections of the media suggesting that bank officials were ordered to withdraw huge amounts of cash from the bank to distribute to third parties. The Bank wishes to dispel these allegations in the strongest terms and state that they are false and unfounded. As reported by the Zambia Police, the money recovered in Lusaka was found packed in travelling bags and had to be transferred to the Bank of Zambia for safe keeping. This therefore necessitated the use of lockable and sealable trunks to safely transport the money from the point of seizure to the Bank,” read the statement.

Mwanza said the BoZ did not hold accounts for individuals and called on members of the public to desist from circulating fake news.

“The Bank of Zambia does not hold accounts for individuals but interacts with the public in terms of the issuance of currency through commercial banks. The public only have access to currency through various channels offered by financial service providers such as Automated Teller Machines, over the counter, and their agents. Members of the public cannot access cash directly from the bank. False reports suggesting otherwise have the potential to tarnish the image of the central bank and destabilize the financial sector and the economy,” stated Mwanza.

“Members of the public are urged to desist from circulating false news. The matter under investigation on the seized cash is being handled by the Zambia Police Service to whom we refer any further queries.”