JEDDAH, 3 August — A Tabuk summary court has sentenced a habitual car thief to seven years in jail and 1,680 lashes after charges against him were proved beyond doubt. His accomplice, a policeman, received four years and 600 lashes.
Isa Abdullah Al-Ghayth, judge at the summary court told Arab News that "the evidences proved conclusively that the first accused stole 36 cars. The period of punishment will be from the date of his detention. The 1,680 lashes will be meted out in 42 installments with an interval of seven days between two lashing sessions."
The second accused had helped him in 14 thefts. He will be lashed 15 times with 40 strokes each time with an interval of seven days between two bouts of lashes.
The traffic patrol in Tabuk had caught the pair red-handed while driving away a stolen car after having made some alterations. The car was missing for some time and the police were on the lookout for it. On seeing the patrol the suspects sped away but they were stopped and arrested after a long chase.
The first accused denied at the time of inquiry that he had stolen the car and that he was only traveling with the other man. On the contrary, the second accused confessed his involvement with the first accused in the theft of 14 cars from various parts of the city.
The judge explained that the punishments to the two varied because of the difference in the number and degree of crimes committed by each. The first convict refused to repent though he had confessed his offenses earlier, the judge said.
The public prosecutor demanded that the court give deterrent punishments, particularly to the second accused because he was a policeman.
