71 Defendants Referred To Court in KD8.66m Agricultural Land Graft Case

The Kuwait Public Prosecution has referred 71 defendants to court over a major corruption case involving agricultural land allocated by the government to citizens, authorities said.

 

Following lengthy investigations, the prosecution said it had uncovered the misappropriation of around KD8.66 million in public funds, along with allegations of money laundering and other offences.

 

The investigation established that the defendants were allegedly involved in a range of corruption-related crimes, including bribery, deliberate damage to public funds, forgery of official documents, money laundering and unlawful financial gain, the prosecution said.

 

The 71 defendants include officials holding senior and supervisory positions, as well as other public-sector employees. The case also involves 28 private-sector legal entities, according to a prosecution statement.

 

The investigation was based on reports received from the Kuwait Anti-Corruption Authority (Nazaha) and the Financial Intelligence Unit, the statement said.

 

The alleged offences relate to agricultural land parcels distributed by the Public Authority for Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources.

 

In a separate enforcement action, environment police said they had issued 30 citations to smokers for violating the law and another citation to a shop for allowing smoking violations on its premises.

 

The smokers were caught smoking in enclosed or semi-enclosed areas of Souq Mubarakiya. Each was fined between KD50 and KD100, while the shop faces a fine ranging from KD1,000 to KD5,000.

 

Meanwhile, the Traffic Department said trucks will be prohibited from using roads during specified daytime periods starting September 1.

 

Under the restriction, trucks will be barred from driving between 6.30am and 9am and from 12.30pm to 3.30pm each day. The daytime ban will remain in force until June 14 next year.

 

From June 15 to August 31, 2027, the restriction will apply only during the evening period, the department said.