Individual Corruption

According to the US Department of State 2009, corruption and impunity are pervasive in the police force. Investigations are carried out, yet they seldom result in criminal proceedings or even disciplinary action. According to the report, the government prosecuted approximately 190 officers of the judicial police, the royal gendarmerie, the auxiliary forces, the royal navy, and prison guards for corruption during 2009. 

Several observers, such as Global Integrity 2008, highlight the traffic police as being particularly corrupt. In 2008, the so-called 'Sniper of Targuist' posted amateur videos on YouTube showing gendarmes stopping car after car to extract bribes. The gendarmes were subsequently arrested, but the corrupt practices allegedly persist.

The newspaper Bladi reported in June 2007 about seven police officers being arrested for extortion. The police officers stopped a Moroccan citizen in his car, pretending that they had been sent to arrest him for his supposed involvement in drug trafficking, and demanded MAD 100.000 to let him go.

Business Corruption

Companies report about a high level of corruption in the Moroccan police force. In addition, the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report 2010-2011 reveals that companies identify Morocco to perform insufficiently in relation to the reliability of police services to protect them from crime. This is corroborated by the World Bank & IFC Enterprise Surveys 2007, which reveals that a substantial part of the surveyed companies pay for security in Morocco, while an insignificant part of these companies identifies crime, theft and disorder as major constraints to doing business in the country.

Political Corruption

Corruption in the police force is said to be a well-organised system enjoying the complicity of actors at all levels. According to Global Integrity 2008, traffic police officers who accept/demand bribes are often pressured to deliver a share of the bribes by their superiors at the end of the work day. If a traffic police officer fails to provide a superior with sufficient cash, the officer will most likely be transferred to another less lucrative area.

According to the same report, the law enforcement agencies are not protected from political interference. Likewise, appointments to the police are seldom based on professional criteria, and party loyalties or personal relationships are often considered. Moreover, some law enforcement officials, most often high-level figures, reportedly enjoy protection from criminal investigations.

Several members of the security forces have been indicted for being linked to drug lords. In 2007, the police chief in the capital, Rabat, faced charges of participation in drug smuggling and prostitution rings. 

Frequency

World Economic Forum: The Global Competitiveness Report 2010-2011:
- Business executives give the reliability of Moroccan police services with regard to enforcing law and order a score of 4.3 on a 7-point scale (1 'cannot be relied upon at all' and 7 being 'can always be relied upon').

Transparency International: Global Corruption Barometer 2010:
- No households who had contact with the police in 2009 report to have paid a bribe.

Transparency International: Global Corruption Barometer 2009:
- 58% of households who had contact with the police in 2008 report to have paid a bribe.

Transparency International: Bribe Payers Index 2008:
- Business executives give the level of corruption in the police a score of 3.4 on a 5 point scale (1 'not at all corrupt' and 5 'extremely corrupt').

The World Bank & IFC: Enterprise Surveys 2007:
- Around 36% of the surveyed companies pay for security in Morocco.

- 3.4% of companies surveyed identify crime, theft and disorder as a major constraint on doing business.