In its verdict, the judge ruled the public prosecutor had
failed to present sufficient and competent evidence to substantiate the charges
leveled against the defendant.
However, the court ordered the confiscation of the
academic’s personal computer following the discovery of sensitive content on
it. The public prosecutor said he would challenge the verdict in the Court of
Appeals.
The verdict came after the public prosecutor’s failure to
present evidence, which resulted in the court sessions being postponed four
times in a row.
Even though the public prosecutor had been given sufficient
time, the judge said, he failed to present coherent evidence to support the
charges leveled against the suspect.
“The Islamic Shariah rules categorically state allegations
against any accused must be proven beyond any doubt. The testimonies given by
some prisoners against the accused at the initiative of the public prosecutor
were not accepted,” the judge observed.
However, the court found the academic guilty of possessing
banned content. Security officials had earlier seized his computer together
with several CDs and audio and videocassettes, in addition to banned books. The
court ordered the confiscation of all the materials.
Following the verdict, the academic said he would seek
compensation from the public prosecutor for framing baseless charges against
him. Among those present in the court included the academic’s nine sons as well
as representatives of the Human Rights Commission and reporters. The academic’s
sons greeted the not guilty verdict with jubilation.
The defendant was accused of a number of charges, including
involvement in the Abqaiq oil refinery attack, supporting Al-Qaeda, embracing
the takfiri (branding opponents infidels) ideology of the Kharijites, abusing
Saudi Islamic scholars and funding terrorist operations. The attack on Abqaiq
oil refinery on Feb. 24, 2006 led to the death of a number of security
officers. The militants also intended to bomb two other oil installations using
explosive-laden cars.
The academic was first arrested in 1995 and released in 2003
before being re-arrested in 2007. He was accused of recruiting a militant and
convincing him to follow the takfiri ideology and participating in the Abqaiq
refinery attack. During the hearings, the defendant vehemently denied all
allegations made against him by the public prosecutor.
