The High Appeals Court of Bahrain upheld the first-degree verdict sentencing an Arab defendant to seven years in prison, imposing a fine of BD10,000, and ordering his deportation from the country.
The defendant was found guilty of participating, along with others, in a scheme to embezzle amounts exceeding BD97,000. The victims of the defendant and his accomplices included employees and a retired lawyer who were persuaded to invest their funds in gold, oil, and minerals.
The prosecution accused the defendant of conspiring and assisting an unknown accomplice in using the victims’ electronic signatures, which were the secret numbers of their credit cards, for fraudulent purposes and to seize the cash amount.
Additionally, the defendant conspired and assisted another unknown person in unlawfully acquiring and embezzling the specified cash amount owned by five victims through deceptive means.
Details of the incident revealed that a gang, including several Arab individuals, deceived their victims by claiming that they would make profits by investing their money. The gang also exploited their female employees to receive these funds, with the employees unknowingly unaware that the amounts were the result of fraudulent activities.
The first victim, a pharmacist, stated that she received a fraudulent call, and the fraudster convinced her of an investment opportunity.
She transferred BD40,000 through bank transfers to the fraudster, willingly giving them part of the amount (BD20,000) herself, without knowing their true intentions. However, the remaining amount of BD20,000 was taken from her bank account without her consent or authorization.