RIYADH, 7 August 2007 — In their continuing crackdown on crime, Riyadh police arrested two young thieves aged 18 and 19 who would snatch handbags from women pedestrians while riding a motorbike.
The Al-Suwaidi police station in the city received calls from two Saudi women, who said that two men on a motorbike without license plates snatched their purses in separate incidents in different parts of the city.
“A motorcycle was found near the Riyadh International Mall on the evening of the same day that the incidents occured. ... While searching the motorcycle, police found a knife, three mobiles, two gold rings and some hashish,” a police statement said.
Police also said they found fingerprints and stolen goods on the motorcycle and were able to identify the suspects, who had criminal records. The two youths were later arrested and are currently in police custody.
Meanwhile, police said they have managed to clamp down on various illegal activities in several crime-infested districts of Riyadh, including the Al-Batha, Al-Shafa and Al-Suwaidi districts. The areas are known to contain a large number of illegal residents.
Among those arrested was a Pakistani national found to be in possession of 60 grams of heroin and a Saudi in possession of 1.8 grams of heroin. Both suspects have been handed over to the Drug Combating Department. An Egyptian overstayer, who had run away from his sponsor, was also apprehended.
Authorities also closed down 15 illegal telephone booths run by Bangladeshis. Three men were arrested, and SR817 and 11 illegal telephone devices were confiscated.
Authorities also closed down an illegal factory manufacturing fake toiletries and an unlicensed bakery that was using out-of-date products. Both factories were shut down and the workers were arrested.
An operation in the Al-Shafa district led to the arrest of 16 overstayers. A number of stores, including a poultry store, a barbershop and a dry cleaner were shut down for not possessing health certificates.
In the Al-Sahafa district, two intoxicated Saudis were arrested — one of the men had in his possession half a liter of locally brewed alcohol. The operation also netted 22 illegal residents.
According to statistics provided by the Statistics and Research Department in the Public Security Department, the Riyadh area of the Kingdom has the highest number of reported crimes, followed by the Makkah region and the Eastern Province.
In 2005, 33,753 crimes were registered in the Riyadh region. Of those crimes, thefts came top (17,118) followed by immoral crimes (4,368). Some 3,000 cases of sale or consumption of alcohol in the region were registered in 2005 — the highest in the Kingdom. A total of 89,873 crimes have been reported in 2005 in all of the Kingdom’s 13 regions, according to the Public Security Department.
