SR100,000 plus 2-year jail for harboring Saudi immigration law violators

RIYADH: A fine of SR100,000 ($26,700) and a maximum of two years’ imprisonment will be imposed on people who harbor violators against the local labor and immigration regulations.
The spokesman for Madinah region police, Maj. Hussain Al-Qahtani, made the announcement on Monday during the government’s ongoing campaign on “A Nation without Violators.”
He said the campaign in Madinah is being carried out under a joint operation with the participation of representatives from Civil Defense, the Saudi Red Crescent Authority, the Madinah governorate and the department of labor and social development.
Al-Qahtani pointed out that the campaign combed neighborhoods and arrested many violators, handing them to the concerned authorities for necessary action.
Last week, the Ministry of Labor and Social Development inspectors reported the arrest of 119,850 persons for various violations.
On Monday, 325 such violators were arrested in a day in a similar campaign in the capital. An Ethiopian expatriate who had lived in the capital for the past 3 years was caught brewing liquor in the city. The police seized a large number of bottles filled with the liquor.
The police said that those who flout local regulations and overstay their Umrah and Hajj visas are mainly instrumental in such crimes as thefts, abductions, armed robbery and burglaries.
Expatriates have been advised to carry their resident identification and other relevant documents during police inspections.