KUWAIT CITY, Feb 15: The Criminal Court acquitted a Kuwaiti citizen who was accused of possessing and consuming drugs as well as driving his car under narcotic influence. During the court session, the defense counsel Lawyer Abdulmohsen Al-Qattan insisted that his client was arrested and searched illegally. He stressed that the only testimony against his client is of the arresting officer, who however had failed to follow proper procedures recognized by the law in handling his client. A c c o r d i n g to the case file, the arresting officer was patrolling Amghara area when he noticed a vehicle parked on the roadside. Based on suspicions, he went towards the car but he then saw the driver trying to hide something after he noticed the officer. This prompted the officer to search him and eventually arrest him after finding drugs on him and noticing his disoriented state.Verdict withheld: The Fast-track Division of the Court of First Instance has received complaints submitted by a general trading and contracting company for the suspension of execution of an order issued against it to pay KD 100,000 in favor of a client, until an appeal filed by the company is concluded. Counsel to the company Lawyer Khawlah Mubarak Al-Hassawi explained that her client approached the company with a court order for receiving payment of KD 100,000 based on a voucher. The company then wondered how the court could have issued such a verdict without inviting the company to hear its side of the case. Due to this reason, the company refused to pay the amount until the court ruled on the appeal.Jail for citizen: The Court of Appeals, presided over by Judge Nasser Salem Al-Heid, overturned the verdict of a lower court which sentenced a citizen to one year in prison for helping a suspected thief escape but it upheld the decision to impose five-year imprisonment with hard labor on the thief. This led to the acquittal of the citizen. Case files indicate that the Public Prosecution charged the suspect with stealing money from an Asian while the citizen was accused of having knowledge of the theft and assisting the suspect to escape. The Criminal Court sentenced the thief to five years in jail and the citizen to one year in jail with hard labor. However, the citizen’s lawyer, Attorney Hashim Al-Rifai, appealed the verdict calling for invalidation of arrest and inspection procedures, citing lack of incriminating evidence against his client. The higher court then ruled that the charges against the citizen had no legal merit.Jail for joining ‘Nusra’: The Cassation Court upheld the verdict of the Appeals Court that sentenced two brothers to 10 years imprisonment with hard labor and fined the first suspect KD 15,000 for joining Al-Nusra Front and fighting in its ranks and supporting the organization financially.By Jaber Al-Hamoud Al-Seyassah Staff