Saudi anti-corruption authority initiates a number of criminal cases

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority announced on Sunday it has initiated a number of criminal cases.
The authority said it had taken over eight cases and legal procedures against the accused were underway.
In the first case, three individuals have been arrested for allegedly embezzling more than SR5 million ($1.3 million) and rewarding a SR60 million project to a company. The three included two municipal employees and a bank employee.
In the second case, three employees at a university are believed to have received more than SR4.4 million in return for awarding several contracts totaling more than SR13.84 million. The employees, as well as a bank branch manager and a businessman, were arrested. They were also accused of laundering the money.
In the third case, a former employee at a university is accused of receiving SR240,000 from a businessman in exchange for neglecting a number of violations with the complicity of a Saudi engineer in three projects worth more than SR7.696. All three have been arrested.
In the fourth case, an employee at an international airport and a businessman were arrested, for enabling the latter’s relative to obtain 218 direct purchase orders unlawfully.
In the fifth case, a former employee of the Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones (Modon) allegedly received SR225,750 from a businessman in exchange for a statement on his company’s competency, which subsequently led to his company being awarded projects from the authority. Both have been arrested.
In the sixth case, an employee from Saudi Customs is accused of receiving SR574,300 from a customs broker in exchange for clearing containers that contained tobacco, using bank accounts of his relatives. They have both been remanded in custody.
In cooperation with the Ministry of Interior, “four non-commissioned officers working at the General Department of Traffic in one of the regions were arrested for pulling over a resident and enabling their colleague (a retired non-commissioned officer) to search his vehicle and steal SR200,000 from his car,” the authority said for the seventh case.
Also in cooperation with the interior ministry, a retired non-commissioned officer from a police department was arrested for allegedly receiving SR219,750, as well as blocks of gold, while working as a warehouse keeper and then laundering them through buying and selling cars through a dealership belonging to a relative.
In the ninth case, a citizen was arrested for bribing an arrest squad of the General Directorate of Narcotics Control with SR200,000 during his arrest for possession of narcotics, in cooperation with the Ministry of Interior.
In the final case, a colonel and a non-commissioned officer from the General Directorate of Passports in one of the regions were arrested for allegedly registering the former’s relative a fake entry into the Kingdom, upon his request.
The authority said it would continue “to pursue anyone who exploits the public office to achieve personal gain or harm the public interest in any way possible.”
It also said that accountability extends far beyond retirement, as “the crimes of financial and administrative corruption have no statute of limitations,” adding it will apply the law against violators with zero tolerance.