Court adjourns MoI Hospitality case for hearing to next month

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KUWAIT CITY, March 19: The Criminal Court adjourned to April 7 the case related to theft of public funds known as “Ministry of Interior Hospitality case” in order to take photocopies of the case files and view the seized objects, which were unpacked recently by the court in front of the defendants and their defense teams. In the previous court session, the defendants were brought to the court and they saw the seized objects, which included receipts and original documents, relevant to the case. Previously, Public Prosecution declared that investigations concerning the complaint filed by Ministry of Interior against 24 individuals have been finished. It then referred the lawsuit to the Court of First Instance to decide on a session at the Criminal Court to pass a ruling on the lawsuit in the light of the report prepared by the State Audit Bureau and according to the results of the investigation conducted by a team of investigators assigned by the Public Prosecutor Dhirar Al-Asousi. The team listened to the testimonies of 40 individuals including the head and members of the committee formed by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Khalid Al-Jarrah in this regard. The team reviewed about 10,000 documents and received help from experts in State Audit Bureau, Central Bank of Kuwait and commercial banks. The Public Prosecution then detained nine suspects, charging them with theft of public funds and facilitating its theft. It also charged 24 suspects with money laundering and forgery of official documents.

Verdict on March 26: The Court of Appeals adjourned until March 26 the issuance of a verdict on the State Security case against an Egyptian DAESH member accused of attempting to kill five American soldiers in Kuwait. The Court of First Instance previously sentenced the defendant to life imprisonment. He was charged with joining DAESH, attempting to kill the American soldiers and destroying a US military vehicle during the incident. The Ministry of Interior announced arrest of the suspect during the premeditated traffic accident, involving the US Army vehicle and the cleaning truck that the suspect was driving through which the DAESH member planned to commit the crime. Documents recovered inside the truck included a map of action laying down the accident plot, suicide belt and other explosive materials for the terror act.

Detention extended: The detention renewal judge has extended for 21 more days the detention of a Kuwaiti lawyer and four Egyptians who are accused of kidnapping Lawyer Saud Al-Halfi. The court ordered that the suspects be remanded in the Central Prison pending outcome of the investigation. Meanwhile, the Court of Appeals upheld verdict issued by the Court of First Instance, which sentenced a blogger to four-year imprisonment with hard labor and whose mobile phone has been seized. The blogger was accused of posting statements deemed offensive and demeaning to status of His Highness the Amir without respect for his office and authority. He also purportedly used his Twitter handle to defame the judiciary. The Public Prosecution also considered his action as misuse of smartphones.

Lawyer acquitted: The Court of Appeals chaired by Counselor Nasser Aal Heid upheld the decision of the Criminal Court and acquitted a lawyer of the accusation of forgery and using fake seals after the Public Prosecution charged the him and other individuals for the offense. The same court adjourned to March 21 an appeal filed by one producer against the decision of the Criminal Court after he was fined KD 10 thousand and obliged to pay KD 5,001 in compensation to the musician Ghannam Al-Daikan who sued him for replicating his recital titled ‘Diaries of a Sailor’, which was allegedly presented by the producer as one of his own works composed in 1979. He added the producer and his company got financial gains from the show by performing it in Kuwait Opera without his permission. However, the producer said he obtained permit from the Ministry of information and even tried to obtain permission from Al-Daikan before the show. He said if the show is cancelled, the plaintiff would bear 50 percent of the cost (KD 630,000) despite KD182,000 has been generated in revenue.

By Jaber Al-Hamoud Al-Seyassah Staff

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