Nazaha arrests businessman, public officials in 15 corruption cases

RIYADH — The Oversight and Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha) announced Wednesday that it had initiated criminal proceedings in 15 corruption cases involving bribery, abuse of office, fraud, theft of public property and other financial and administrative offenses, with legal procedures continuing against those involved.Among the most significant cases, Nazaha arrested a Saudi businessman accused of offering SR1.6 million to a customs broker to facilitate the entry of two shipping containers carrying restricted tobacco products through Jeddah Islamic Port without paying approximately SR14 million in customs duties.A Ministry of Health employee in one of the Kingdom's regions was detained for allegedly receiving SR900,000 in installments in exchange for unlawfully awarding several government projects to a commercial entity.In cooperation with the Ministry of Energy, Nazaha arrested a resident employed on one of the ministry's projects while allegedly accepting SR200,000 to refrain from issuing fines totaling SR1.5 million against a commercial establishment.The authority also arrested a resident working for an engineering consultancy who had been appointed by the Commercial Court as an expert in a commercial dispute. He was allegedly caught receiving SR50,000, part of an agreed SR100,000 bribe, in exchange for preparing a technical report favoring one party in the case.Working with the Ministry of Interior, Nazaha detained a former General Directorate of Passports officer accused of receiving a total of SR60,500 to illegally process expatriate-related transactions. A Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority employee was also arrested while allegedly accepting SR55,000 to unlawfully alter the status of imported goods entering the Kingdom.The authority further detained two employees at a municipality in one of the governorates for allegedly receiving SR40,000 to unlawfully complete official transactions, while another municipal employee was arrested after allegedly accepting SR10,000, part of an agreed SR50,000 payment, in exchange for facilitating a municipal procedure.Nazaha also arrested a Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development employee while allegedly receiving SR10,000 in exchange for not issuing violations against a commercial establishment during an inspection campaign.In a separate case, another ministry employee and a Saudi citizen were detained after the employee allegedly accepted SR2,500 in exchange for issuing a false letter addressed to the General Directorate of Passports to cancel an expatriate's absconding report and facilitate the transfer of the worker's sponsorship.The authority also detained four municipal employees accused of unlawfully hiring relatives and misappropriating salaries allocated to expatriate workers employed by the municipality.In the healthcare sector, a resident employed at a medical facility was arrested for allegedly accepting money to issue a medical examination report and laboratory test results for an expatriate without the individual's presence and uploading the documents to the Balady electronic platform.In cooperation with the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah and Guidance, Nazaha detained a ministry employee accused of stealing several computers while serving as the custodian of a regional ministry warehouse.A driving school employee was also arrested while allegedly accepting money from a resident in exchange for completing procedures to issue a driver's license without requiring attendance at the school.In another case, the manager of a periodic vehicle inspection station and another employee at the same facility were detained for allegedly receiving money to unlawfully complete vehicle inspection procedures.Nazaha reaffirmed its commitment to detecting and prosecuting anyone who misuses public funds or exploits public office for personal gain or to the detriment of the public interest. The authority stressed that financial and administrative corruption offenses are not subject to a statute of limitations and that offenders will be held accountable even after leaving public service.