Kuwaiti and 2 Americans Sentenced to Life in KD 98 Million Scam

10/05/2026

Kuwaiti and 2 Americans Sentenced to Life in KD 98 Million Scam

KUWAIT CITY, May 10: The Criminal Court, presided over by Judge Jarrah Al-Daihani, sentenced seven defendants, including Kuwaitis and two Americans, to life imprisonment, fined them KD98 million, and ordered them to pay KD49 million for embezzling funds from an investment fund, in which the Public Institution for Social Security (PIFFS) and Kuwait Ports Authority (KPA) owned stakes.

The Public Prosecution charged the defendants, including the director of the Ports Investment Fund, with deliberately harming public funds by executing sham transactions and filing fabricated lawsuits and arbitration proceedings in Dubai, the United States of America and the Cayman Islands in order to seize the assets of the fund and generate illicit gains. The investigation revealed that the defendants exploited an investment management agreement signed in 2016 to file lawsuits at the Dubai International Financial Centre courts, claiming unjustified sums, fees and interest as part of a scheme to misappropriate the assets of the fund.

This case is based on a report submitted by Attorney Abdullah Al-Kandari, who unveiled the fictitious lawsuits and suspicious financial movements related to the fund’s management, prompting the competent authorities to conduct extensive investigations, which ended with the referral of the accused to the Criminal Court.

By Jaber Al-Hamoud Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff