MADINAH, 19 March 2007 — A group of Saudis, who have fallen victim to scams run by a professor, have called on the authorities to arrest the man and force him to pay back their money totaling SR7 million, Al-Madinah newspaper reported yesterday.
Ahmad Sulaiman Hijazi, a pensioner from Madinah, said the professor asked him to purchase a number of cars on his behalf. “The cars were worth SR985,000. I bought the cars and sold them for the professor and then handed him the money,” said Hijazi, adding that the professor has not paid him anything back.
Hijazi said the professor keeps delaying payment saying he is involved in a SR8 million project. “I didn’t know I was the professor’s latest victim. At the time I had asked him to give me a guarantee and so he gave me some land deeds. However, he worked it out with a friend of his in such a way that I was unable to take custody of the land,” said Hijazi.
He added that he was able to obtain a letter from the Interior Ministry calling on the professor to hand him at least SR750,000 of his money. The professor has also failed to pay this.
“I haven’t received anything. I have different official documents including those that he signed himself and those from the Interior Ministry; all these papers have not helped me. I have consulted the authorities and talked to his father, who said I should go to court,” said Hijazi.
Hijazi added that the professor was fired from the university where he used to lecture. “He deceives others with his good reputation, education and knowledge of religion. On seeing him you’d think highly of him. It is totally the opposite when dealing with him,” Hijazi said.
Musid Hisham Al-Gamrawi, the legal representative of a number of the professor’s victims, said, “They’ve trusted him and then be left duped.”
Gamrawi said he had consulted different legal bodies. “A number of decisions have been issued accusing the professor of fraudulently taking people’s money. He’s been summoned by the authorities but he failed to turn up,” he said.
A source at the Interior Ministry in Madinah confirmed that many people have complained against the professor. “We have investigated the complaints and transferred the case to responsible authorities,” said the source.
