JEDDAH: A total of 2,230 foreign residents were arrested in Jeddah for various offenses, according to police spokesman Col. Misfar Al-Juaid.
The official did not say when these arrests took place, but it is assumed they happened over a recent period of time.
Al-Juaid underscored various types of crimes these suspects are accused of committing, including harboring illegal residents, drinking or selling alcohol and running unlicensed commercial enterprises.
The spokesman added that 110 of these suspects were wanted criminals. The raids took place in the following Jeddah districts: Baghdadiah, Ruwais, Bawadi and Hindawiyah.
In one case an undisclosed number of foreign men were arrested for setting up a photocopy machine in front of a local government building and offering documentation services, which is a common enterprise offered in front of or nearby government buildings.
Another unreported number of foreigners were arrested for impersonating Saudi police officers to scare foreign workers out of their money.
The report did not offer a breakdown of nationalities or specify whether all of these foreigners were in the country legally.
