'Criminal Court': Execution of 3 Accused, Including a Woman, in Drug Trafficking and Money Laundering Case

A criminal court sentenced three defendants, including a woman, to death after convicting them in a case involving drug trafficking, trafficking in psychotropic substances, and money laundering derived from these activities. In a separate ruling, the court exempted the fourth defendant from punishment, imposing a bail of 500 Kuwaiti dinars and a two-year commitment to maintain good conduct.

The Public Prosecution had charged the three defendants with laundering 73,830 dinars derived from drug and psychotropic substance trafficking, through the possession, transfer, conversion, concealment of their true nature, and obfuscation of their illegal source.

Investigations revealed that the defendants made repeated financial transfers to the second defendant through exchange companies, injecting the funds into the financial system under descriptions that did not reflect their true nature, with the intent to legitimize them, fully aware that the money was derived from criminal activity.

The prosecution also charged the defendants with possessing cocaine and the psychotropic drug pregabalin with the intent to traffic and consume. The fourth defendant was accused of providing pregabalin to the third defendant without compensation for the purpose of consumption.

According to the testimony of an officer from the General Directorate of Criminal Investigations before the Public Prosecution, the case details stem from information and inquiries regarding the first defendant’s possession of drugs and psychotropic substances with the intent to traffic and consume, prompting the prosecution to issue an arrest warrant.

The officer stated that he tasked a confidential source with purchasing 3 grams of cocaine from the first defendant for 360 dinars. The two parties agreed to complete the transaction at the parking lots of the Al-Zahraa Cooperative Society.

He added that investigators proceeded to the designated location and monitored the sale and purchase process before arresting the first defendant upon receiving the agreed-upon signal from the confidential source. They found the agreed amount in his possession, while the source handed over three small bags containing a white substance suspected to be a drug.

Upon confrontation with the seized items, the first defendant admitted they were cocaine and directed investigators to his residence. A search of the home yielded quantities of drugs and psychotropic substances, distributed among various bags and containers, along with cash and tools used for weighing and packaging the substances.

The seized items included cash amounts of 575 and 1,365 dinars, in addition to 110 white capsules, three white and red capsules, a large number of small bags containing a white substance suspected to be a drug, four sensitive scales, empty bags prepared for packaging, and two strips of tablets.

The officer reported that the first defendant admitted to possessing the seized items with the intent to traffic and consume, and that the seized money was derived from the sale of drugs and psychotropic substances.

According to investigations, the first defendant’s statements revealed that he received drugs from the second defendant, who was abroad, sending him sales instructions via the Snapchat application. The third defendant was responsible for receiving the drugs and delivering them to him near an electrical transformer in front of her home.

He clarified that the first defendant was responsible for distributing and delivering the drugs to buyers, after which he handed the sales proceeds to the third defendant, deducting his share, so she could transfer the remaining amounts to the second defendant through an exchange company.

The officer added that inquiries revealed the three defendants’ involvement in possessing drugs with the intent to traffic and consume, and that a search of the third defendant’s residence yielded strips and containers containing various capsules suspected to be psychotropic substances.

He noted that the third suspect was apprehended at the residence of the fourth suspect, after investigations indicated her presence there. He explained that she used to receive cash payments and transfer them to the second suspect, after deducting her share on some occasions, while the first suspect retained his portion before handing over the remaining amounts.

Following deliberations, the Criminal Court sentenced the three suspects to death, and refrained from punishing the fourth suspect, releasing him on bail of 500 dinars, with an order to provide a guarantee of good conduct for a period of two years.