Aspiring forensic accountants are getting insights into fraud examination and financial investigative techniques at a specialised workshop that started yesterday.

Being held under the patronage of Central Bank of Bahrain Governor Rasheed Al Maraj, the three-day workshop is organised by Bahrain's Royal University for Women, Riffa in co-operation with America's West Virginia University.

It is being conducted by Dr Richard Riley, a veteran in the field, who will shed light on money laundering, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, asset misappropriation, general corruption and financial statement fraud.

According to a participant, forensic accountants combine their knowledge of accounting and finance with law in order to detect criminal activities such as misstating profits or tax evasion.

"The job typically involves examination of all the financial statements of an organisation, interviewing executives and other involved parties as well as examining secondary documents such as tax returns or cancelled cheques.

"A number of forensic accountants also work as consultants, helping to identify vulnerabilities and tighten up internal accounting controls," he said.

Royal University for Women professor Mazin Jumah and West Virginia University associate vice-president of student affairs David Stewart spoke.-TradeArabia News Service