Court of Appeal: Lawyer, doctor, and businessman sentenced to 10 years in 'Palace Affairs' funds case
- Fined 27 million dinars and ordered to repay 4.5 million, with two of them dismissed from their positions
The Court of Appeal, presided over by Advisor Abdullah Al-Sanea and with the participation of Advisors Saud Al-Mutairi and Bassam Al-Ghuwainem, annulled the Criminal Court’s ruling that acquitted three citizens, and re-sentenced each of them to 10 years in prison and a fine of 9 million dinars. They were also jointly ordered to repay 4.5 million dinars, and the first and second defendants were dismissed from their positions, in a case involving funds of a company in which the Public Authority for Child Welfare participates.
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The case stems from public prosecution charges against the first and second defendants, in their capacity as public officials, for abusing their positions in a company in which the Public Authority for Child Welfare holds a direct 39.234 percent stake, causing harm to the company’s interests and obtaining personal benefits. The third defendant was charged with conspiring with them to commit the crime.
According to the charges, the first and second defendants, in 2017, contracted to purchase a plot of land in the United Kingdom for a total of 4.537 million dinars, paid from the company’s funds, despite their knowledge that the contracting party did not own the property in question.
The company’s executive committee, chaired by the first defendant and including the second defendant as a member, approved in June 2017 the purchase of a property in Kent, southeastern England, for 5 million dinars. It also approved the involvement of an investment company as an intermediary to provide real estate consulting services.
After signing the preliminary contract, the first installment of the property’s value was transferred, followed later by the full transaction amount and intermediary fees, totaling 4.537 million dinars.
Case documents indicated that the first defendant submitted a document to the company’s board of directors stating that the land had been registered as part of the company’s assets, and acknowledged that ownership was confirmed under a company established as a branch in London. However, investigations later revealed that the property was not owned by the selling company at the time of the contract, and that ownership actually belonged to another company.
Case documents also revealed that the company under which the property was allegedly registered had not been officially established at the time the preliminary sales contract was signed; it was established two days later. Additionally, undisclosed ties existed between the property-owning company, the intermediary company, and the second and third defendants.
The public prosecution also charged the first defendant with forging the document submitted to the company’s board of directors, which falsely stated that the property was registered under the company’s name. The third defendant was charged with conspiring with the first and second defendants to commit the crime.
The Criminal Court had previously acquitted the defendants, but the Court of Appeal, after reviewing the case, decided to refer it to the Expert Administration to examine the facts and related documents.
The experts’ report confirmed violations related to conflicts of interest, and concluded that the ownership of the London property in question had not yet been registered in favor of the state-participating company.
Based on the report’s findings and the evidence reviewed by the court, the Court of Appeal annulled the acquittal ruling and re-sentenced the three defendants to 10 years in prison each, fined each 9 million dinars, ordered them jointly to repay 4.5 million dinars, and dismissed the first and second defendants from their positions.
