Ewan Macmillan, a Zimbabwean businessman, has issued an apology for his remarks in Al Jazeera’s Gold Mafia documentary series.
The series alleged that Macmillan was involved in gold smuggling and money laundering. In the documentary, Macmillan claimed he and others, including Zimbabwe’s ambassador Uebert Angel, could launder millions of U.S. dollars on behalf of Zimbabwe’s government as a sanctions-busting measure.
In his apology, Macmillan said he made the statements in the documentary while under the influence of alcohol and that the claims were not true.
The apology comes months after the airing of the documentary, which sparked threats of lawsuits from those named and an initial dismissal by the Zimbabwean government as a smear campaign ahead of Zimbabwe’s August elections.
However, the government later said it was investigating the matter to clear its name, and some individuals mentioned had bank accounts temporarily frozen. The government investigation aims to determine the truth of the money laundering and gold smuggling allegations.
