The Board of Grievances on Sunday looked into bribery charges against six public- and private-sector employees. The presiding judge found five of the employees guilty of the charges while the sixth was acquitted. Five of the defendants were present a the hearing. An Arab national, who was the prime accused in the scam, did not show up. The man was indicted in the case but was later released for lack of evidence. The Arab expatriate gave had given incriminating evidence against the other suspects during questioning. After all of them admitted to their involvement in the scam, the prosecution referred the case to court. The Arab national fled the country as the court proceedings continued. In his verdict on Sunday, the judge sentenced him to six years in prison and a fine of SR600,000. The other four defendants were given a total of seven years in prison and fines amounting to SR200,000. All five defendants said they would challenge the verdict in the higher court. __
