A Jeddah District Court yesterday sentenced 10 convicted robbers of African descent to seven years in prison and 2,200 lashes each for staking out banks and robbing customers leaving them.
The case developed two months ago when the police received reports from bank customers and officials that they were robbed when they came out of the banks by thieves who snatched their bags and fled.
Police tracked down a group of people for their suspicious movements and after a short time nabbed them red-handed when they attempted to rob an Arab resident as he exited a bank in Jeddah. Police officers seized the robbers and return the stolen money to the victim.
The robbers confessed to their crimes during preliminary investigations, saying they monitored the victims, snatching their bags or wallets as soon as they came out of the banks. The defendants said they used force in case of resistance from victims.
During the investigation, police also found their fingerprints on 43 stolen vehicles.
Jeddah robbers get 7 years, 2,200 lashes each
