A senior judicial official was arrested over bribery in eastern Nangarhar province of Afghanistan, the Ministry of Interior (MoI) said Wednesday.
The official was identified as Azizullah who was serving as the legal director in provincial judicial directorate.
A statement by the Ministry of Interior (MoI) said Azizullah was arrested while he was taking $5000 in bribe from a local resident to resolve a legal issue.
The statement further added that the arrest was made by the operatives of Economic Crimianl Investigation Department of the Ministry of Interior.
According to MoI Azizullah was arrested in his office while he was receving the money from the applicant.
The detained official is currently in the custody of police for further investigation, the statement by MoI added.
The arrest of the senior judicial official in Nangarhar comes as the Integrity Watch Afghanistan following a report said nearly $2 billion have been paid in bribes by Afghan people over the past 12 months.
The report released earlier this year stated that judicial institutions of the country are one of the most corrupt departments of the government.
According to the report, the average amount of bribe paid by Afghan people has increased from $190 last year to $240 this year.
