JEDDAH, 15 June — Authorities in Makkah recently arrested a gang selling ordinary water as Zamzam water to visitors of the holy city, Al-Madinah newspaper reported.
The daily said that the Ajyad Municipality officials seized more than 300 containers of fake Zamzam water as they were displayed for sale on the roadside leading to the Grand Mosque.
The Arabic paper said that the municipal officials advised pilgrims to purchase containers from shops and fill them with Zamzam water by themselves from the Kudai area where the Presidency for the Two Holy Mosques has constructed a special place for that purpose. The Kudai plant for Zamzam is open around the clock and anyone can fill their containers from the faucets there without charge. Makkah municipal officials have confiscated many fake Zamzam containers in the past and handed those selling them over to the police.
In Makkah, security officers are hunting for the thieves who broke into a Saudi’s house in the holy city recently and escaped with SR377,000 in cash in addition to jewelry and a camera, amounting to SR500,000.
The victim told Al-Madinah that the theft occurred after he left for Taif to spend the weekend at his farm in the summer resort city. “The next day I got a call from the guard who informed me about the robbery.” The Saudi owner immediately returned to Makkah and found that the robbers had entered his house through the toilet window. He said he believed that the robbery was pre-planned as he had witnessed a car following him until he entered the Taif road on the day of the robbery. He also pointed out that the car driver was carrying a mobile phone. Brig. Muhammad Al-Harithy, director of Makkah police, has deployed his officers to track down the thieves.
In a related development, police in Al-Mansour recently arrested a man aged 40 for killing a 13-year-old boy after sexually assaulting him. Al-Harithy, the police chief, praised his officers for tracking down the suspect.
