SR2bn fraud: accused faces assets probe
The criminal court in Jeddah has ordered Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency investigators to find out whether a man, accused of money laundering totaling SR2 billion, has other accounts and property in the UAE, India and China, Arab News has reported.
The court ruled that the man, a Saudi in his 30s, should be held in custody until the investigation is complete.
It should also be determined if he has any property and assets not disclosed in the Kingdom, a local publication reported recently.
The court received an eight-page memorandum from the accused explaining his side of the story, but the judge delayed a hearing on this aspect until the next session.
Separate charges have been filed against an expatriate, under the sponsorship of the main accused, for depositing amounts between SR30 million and SR60 million in his account.
The Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution (BIPP) has accused the Saudi man of depositing SR2 billion in his account for money laundering purposes, owning several bogus firms, and using his expatriate workers to deposit large amounts of money in local banks.
The BIPP had received notifications from banks about the alleged suspicious financial dealings of the accused and his commercial establishments, including large cash deposits that totaled SR550 million in one year for a single firm.
The accused allegedly has inactive wholesale and retail firms, including a wood factory.
It also showed that he started out as a blue-collar worker and lived in a poor neighborhood with his father.
He began a business 15 years ago importing electronics after signing several deals in the UAE.
The accused said he has been in business for 10 years managing commercial activities in the UAE, China and India. He has eight bank accounts in the UAE and China, and contracts with almost 50 companies in the UAE for four years.
He said that he acquired the SR2 billion by collecting debt from foreign companies seven years ago, and that people depositing money in his accounts are representatives of his companies in the Kingdom.
He has been accused of money laundering by acquiring cash in an irregular manner and violating Article Two of the Bank Monitoring System by operating without a license.