Two people sentenced to 3 years jail for money laundering: Saudi Public Prosecution

The public prosecution announced that it had issued the preliminary ruling, adding the citizen had been barred from traveling for three years and the expat would be deported from the Kingdom after he has completed his sentence.

The prosecution said that it was working to recover about SR6 million ($1,599 million) smuggled abroad through the judicial authority’s International Cooperation Department.

An official at the public prosecution said that a citizen had colluded with a foreign national to enable him to access his bank accounts in return for a monthly sum of money, a statement on Saudi Press Agency said.

“Accordingly, the citizen created a commercial entity and opened bank accounts, to legitimize them, with the aim of misleading regulatory authorities into believing that there is existing commercial activity. The citizen then handed over the bank accounts to the expat who had collected money illegally, deposited it into those accounts, and transferred it abroad,” the official said.

Evidence found during the investigation revealed that the commercial entity has no activity on the ground, the official said.

The official warned of the danger of enabling others to exploit private bank accounts to transfer funds illegally, adding that the public prosecution would continue to combat all financial crimes and demand the most severe deterrent penalties.