Doha, Qatar: The Criminal Court of First Instance issued a sentence of four years imprisonment to a Qatari employee and four individuals of Arab nationalities, while acquitting one defendant for bribery, abuse of power and money laundering.
This comes following the Public Prosecutor's referral of the defendants to the court on charges of offering and accepting bribes, mediating in bribery, abuse of official authority, and money laundering.
The Public Prosecution launched investigations into the case following a complaint submitted by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry against one of its employees for committing several administrative violations. These included processing transactions for the issuance of commercial licenses — specifically for shisha cafés and massage and relaxation activities — for a business establishment in violation of the law and the applicable procedures.
The Public Prosecution, in a statement, said that, "In return, the employee received bribes from the other convicted individuals, amounting to a total of QR201,140. Investigations and inquiries, supported by the confessions of several of those convicted, confirmed the commission of the offenses."
The court sentenced the employee to four years’ imprisonment and imposed a fine equivalent to the bribe amount for the crimes of accepting bribes and abuse of official authority. Prosecution added that she was also sentenced to an additional one year in prison and fined QR2 million for money laundering.
The Egyptian national who offered the bribe was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment and fined an amount equal to the bribe for the offense of bribing a public employee. He was also sentenced to one year in prison and fined QR2 million for money laundering, and ordered to be deported after serving his sentence.
The remaining convicted individuals — holding Tunisian and Egyptian passports — were also sentenced to four years’ imprisonment each, along with financial penalties, for participating in offering bribes to a public employee.
The court also acquitted one of the defendants of the charges brought against him.
