Saudi anti-corruption authority arrests several citizens, Bangladeshi residents in criminal case

Saudi anti-corruption authority arrests several citizens, Bangladeshi residents in criminal case
Short Url
Updated 05 March 2023

Saudi anti-corruption authority arrests several citizens, Bangladeshi residents in criminal case

Saudi anti-corruption authority arrests several citizens, Bangladeshi residents in criminal case
  • Employees of the Interior Minister arrested for allegedly forcing a resident to sign a SR23 million ($6.1 million) financial commitment to a foreign investor
  • SR20 million cash plus gold ingots and luxury vehicles — proceeds of illegally selling work visas in the Kingdom — seized from the Bangladeshi residents

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority announced on Saturday that it had initiated a criminal case.

The authority, also known as Nazaha, said that two employees of the Ministry of Interior were arrested for allegedly forcing a resident to sign a SR23 million ($6.1 million) financial commitment to a foreign investor, in exchange for receiving SR60,000 from an investor.

“The names of those arrested are Sergeant of the Court Security (Riyadh region police) Metab Saad Al-Ghnoum, Corporal of the Special Missions Forces in Riyadh Hatem Mastoor Saad bin Tayeb, and Palestinian investor Saleh Mohammed Saleh Al-Shalout,” the authority said in a statement.

“Upon further investigation, several residents were also arrested,” including Bangladeshi residents Ashraf Uddin Aknad, Almgeer Hussain Khan, Shfeeq Alislam Shah Jahan, it added.

The arrests also include Bangladeshi residents Mohammed Nasser Uddin Noor — owner of a recruitment office in his home country, Zaid Uosied Mafy, Abulklam Mohammed Rafeeq Alislam, Aziz Alhaq Muslim Uddin, and visitor Alameen Khan Shahid Allah Khan, “for their involvement in illegal visa trading and money smuggling outside the Kingdom.”

Nazaha said that they admitted to engaging in illegal visa trading with the complicity of employees of the Saudi embassy in Bangladesh, and after “searching their homes, SR20,180,000 was found in cash, as well as gold ingots, and luxury vehicles, which turned out to be the proceeds of illegally selling work visas in the Kingdom.”

The authority said that two more people were arrested as the investigation unfolded, including Head of the Consular Section at the Saudi Embassy in Bangladesh and former Deputy Ambassador Abdullah Falah Mudhi Al-Shammari, and Deputy Head of the Consular Section at the embassy Khaled Nasser Ayed Al-Qahtani.

They were arrested for their complicity with the Bangladeshi national and for receiving SR54 million in installments while working at the embassy in exchange for finalizing the issuances of work visas.

“They acknowledged receiving parts of the money from the arrested residents inside Saudi Arabia and invested the rest outside the Kingdom,” the authority said.

Nazaha said that it would continue to pursue anyone who exploited public office to achieve personal gain or harm the public interest in any way, and that accountability extended far beyond the retirement of individuals as these types of crimes had no statute of limitations.


Saudi authorities bust khat smuggling operation in Jazan

Saudi authorities bust khat smuggling operation in Jazan
Updated 13 sec ago

Saudi authorities bust khat smuggling operation in Jazan

Saudi authorities bust khat smuggling operation in Jazan
  • The seizure was handed over to the competent authority for preliminary legal procedures

RIYADH: Saudi border guards in the Jazan region have foiled attempts to smuggle 200kg of the narcotic khat. 

The seizure was handed over to the competent authority for preliminary legal procedures, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Tuesday.

Authorities have urged people to report any activities related to drug smuggling or promotion by calling 911 in the Makkah, Riyadh and Eastern Province regions, and 999 in the rest of the Kingdom’s regions.
 


Tenth Saudi aid plane arrives in Sudan

Tenth Saudi aid plane arrives in Sudan
Updated 30 May 2023

Tenth Saudi aid plane arrives in Sudan

Tenth Saudi aid plane arrives in Sudan
  • The plane carried 30 tons of food and medical supplies

RIYADH: The tenth Saudi plane carrying aid for the Sudanese people arrived at Port Sudan International Airport on Tuesday.

The plane, carrying 30 tons of food and medical supplies, is part of a Saudi initiative to provide $100 million in humanitarian aid to Sudan.

Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces agreed to extend a week-long ceasefire deal by five days just before it was due to expire late on Monday.

The truce was brokered and is being remotely monitored by Saudi Arabia and the United States, which say it has been violated by both sides but has still allowed for the delivery of aid to an estimated two million people.


Saudi Cabinet says it is following developments in Sudan

Saudi Cabinet says it is following developments in Sudan
Updated 30 May 2023

Saudi Cabinet says it is following developments in Sudan

Saudi Cabinet says it is following developments in Sudan
  • Cabinet also discussed a draft MoU between the governments of the Kingdom and the UK to cooperate in the field of research, development, and innovation

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Cabinet said on Tuesday that it is following developments in Sudan and the course of negotiation talks in Jeddah.

The Cabinet also said it was following the agreements that resulted in a short-term ceasefire and the provision of humanitarian arrangements.

Saudi Arabia and the US, which previously brokered a week-long ceasefire deal and have been monitoring it remotely, announced shortly before it was due to expire on Monday evening that Sudan’s warring military factions had agreed to extend it.

Although the ceasefire had been imperfectly observed, it had allowed the delivery of aid to an estimated two million people, the two countries said in a joint statement.

“The extension will provide time for further humanitarian assistance, restoration of essential services, and discussion of a potential longer-term extension,” the statement added.

The Cabinet also discussed a draft memorandum of understanding between the governments of the Kingdom and the UK to cooperate in the field of research, development, and innovation.

It also discussed a draft agreement between the Transport General Authority in the Kingdom and the Suez Canal Authority in Egypt for cooperation in developing transportation of cruise ships and cargo ships through the Suez Canal.


Dive in… world’s biggest floating water park open in Saudi Arabia

Dive in… world’s biggest floating water park open in Saudi Arabia
Updated 30 May 2023

Dive in… world’s biggest floating water park open in Saudi Arabia

Dive in… world’s biggest floating water park open in Saudi Arabia

RIYADH: Beat the heat this summer in Jeddah with a visit to the world’s biggest floating water park, recently opened by German company Wibit Sports and local Saudi partner Blue Limits.

Speaking to Arab News at the Saudi Entertainment and Amusement summit and expo in Riyadh, Witbit founder Robert Cirjak said that the layout of Pure Beach in King Abdullah Economic City spelled out the letters Saudi Arabia, adding: “We are more than proud to have broken a record again and we are so happy that it is in Saudi Arabia.” 

“Try to think of our floating water park as a floating playground where you can climb, slide, swing, crawl, chase after your best friend and then jump and dive into the water.”

He said the Pure Beach is 600 meters wide and 120 meters long. “It accommodates 600 people at the same time. That’s a lot of smiles, selfie moments and exhilaration all at the same time. And it is for people of all ages,” he said.

Cirjak said the floating park is made out of PVC material, “similar to a Zodiac boat. It contains a valve, you fill it with air and it stays inflated for the whole summer.

“You are more than welcome to come to Pure Beach and enjoy the fun. Just bring your towel and bathing suits, and that’s all you need. Falling in the water is not only fun, it is exhilarating.”

Cirjak said he was “super happy” with the relationships built with Blue Limits and the Saudi government.

He added that he hoped to expand operations in the Kingdom. “We are in current negotiations. We are very excited. We can’t disclose everything but we are looking at a very special project in Neom.”

Wibit also runs the world’s biggest inflatable aqua park, Aqua Dreamland in Gilimanuk, Bali. Its layout spells “Indonesia.”


Saudi astronauts Earth-bound after 8 days in space

Saudi astronauts Earth-bound after 8 days in space
Updated 30 May 2023

Saudi astronauts Earth-bound after 8 days in space

Saudi astronauts Earth-bound after 8 days in space
  • Rayyanah Barnawi is the first Saudi Arabian and Arab woman to go into space

DUBAI: Saudi astronauts Rayyanah Barnawi and Ali AlQarni are scheduled to return to Earth late Tuesday after spending eight days on the International Space Station (ISS), where they conducted a series of science experiments.

Barnawi, the first Saudi Arabian and Arab woman to go into space, and AlQarni arrived at the space station on May 22 as part of the private AX-2 mission launched by Axiom Space.

TIMELINE: AX-2 mission’s return to Earth

“The four-member multinational astronaut crew is scheduled to undock no earlier than 3:05 p.m. (GMT) Tuesday, May 30, from the space-facing port of the station’s Harmony module in a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft to begin the journey home and splashdown off the coast of Florida,” a NASA statement said.

“Ax-2 Commander Peggy Whitson, Pilot John Shoffner, and Mission Specialists Ali Alqarni and Rayyanah Barnawi, both representing the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, will complete approximately nine days in space at the conclusion of their mission. Their SpaceX Dragon will return to Earth with more than 300 pounds of cargo, including NASA hardware and data from over 20 different experiments,” the statement added.

NASA will provide live coverage of the undocking and departure of AX-2 mission from the ISS, while Axiom Space will livestream the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft’s re-entry and splashdown on the company’s website.

The Axiom Mission-2 and Expedition 69 crew members pose for a portrait together during dinner time aboard the International Space Station. (NASA)

During their eight-day stay at the space station, the Saudi astronauts did a series of experiments, among them a heat transmission study with Saudi students across the Kingdom concerning the space station’s microgravity and earth.

“Results have shown that heat travels slower in space than it does on earth,” a report from state news agency SPA said.

A space kite experiment that involved 12,000 11- to 13-year-old middle school students from 47 schools across Saudi Arabia was also conducted through a live video feed with the space-bound Saudis.

The Ax-2 astronauts on Monday joined the Expedition 69 crew members for a joint farewell ceremony.

In 1985, air force pilot Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz took part in a US-organized space voyage, becoming the first Saudi in space.