A Gabonese man was sentenced to five years in prison and 1000 lashes for tricking a Saudi woman into believing that he could multiply her fortune with the help of jinn. Presenting the case, the prosecutor general had called on the court to impose the maximum punishment on the con man. The victim, a widow, had received a number of international calls from an individual who identified himself as Sheikh Ibrahim. The woman was convinced about the sheikh's “superhuman” abilities when he revealed to her his prior knowledge of details in her personal life. He told her that she was a widow and had inherited a fortune from her husband. The man promised her to multiply her wealth if she was willing to send him SR10,000 to distribute in charity. The victim complied. A few days later, the so-called sheikh called her again, this time with promises of doubling money for her. He asked her to keep two briefcases each containing SR10,000 and two pieces of cloth (one white and the other red) in a room. She was told to keep the room locked and not allow anyone in for three days. He told her she should read some chapters from the Holy Qur'an every day until he would send his son to her from Gabon. On the third day, a man called her. “I'm Sheikh Ibrahim's son and I want to see the briefcases so that I can start invoking the jinn to multiply your money,” he told her. Falling into the trap, the widow invited him to her house to see the briefcases. When he got inside the room, he asked the victim to wait outside because he was going to call the jinn to multiply the money. A few minutes later, she was called in and, she saw the briefcases full of money. The man then asked the widow to give him SR150,000, which he would multiply the same way. This rose suspicions in her. The woman immediately contacted the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (Haia), which set up a sting operation and arrested the Gabonese with the help of the local police. __
