The 12 men include officials from the Makkah notary office, businessmen, real estate brokers and a former official at the notary office.

The criminal charges against them include bribery, misuse of official power, illegal procurement of money, corruption and forging documents.

If convicted, the accused will face prison terms ranging from five to 10 years, lashes in public, dismissal from their jobs, fines and payment of damages to their victims.

According to a court source, the men were arrested for their involvement in the illegal sale of 8,000 square meters of land in Makkah worth approximately SR40 million.

A former employee of the Makkah notary office served as a middleman and introduced a businessman to an official responsible for registering land deals so that plots could be registered with forged documents.

It was also alleged that the former employee had paid SR300,000 in bribes to the registration official.