Harb Denies Links to Bekaa Hashish Incident, Says to Pursue those who Impersonate him

March 14 MP Butros Harb denied overnight reports that two men detained for the possession of hashish, were his bodyguards, pointing out that he is holding on to his right to prosecute any person who “impersonates" him.

“MP Harb denies that any of his staff members or bodyguards use drugs. The MP was surprised with the news,” a statement issued by his press office on Tuesday night said.

Earlier on Tuesday, media reports said the two suspects were detained in the eastern Bekaa region for the possession of 3 grams of hashish and holding fake registration documents in the name of the lawmaker.

“One of the two detained men worked for a short period of time, several years ago, as a bodyguard for Harb's brother,” the statement noted.

The press office said that when the brother of MP Harb discovered that the men used drugs, he sacked him.

The statement presumed that the men could have taken copies of MP Harb's car “for some unknown purpose.”

The driver was identified as Rami Tanios and “investigations showed that the vehicle registration document is forged and has nothing to do with MP Harb,” the state-run National News Agency said.

It noted that the driver is a former prisoner who was jailed for drug smuggling.

Harb stressed that he is keen to implement the law and choose his staff carefully, saying that the drug claim aims at distorting his image.