DAMMAM — A summary court has sentenced a Bahraini woman to six years imprisonment and 580 lashes for using and distributing drugs. The woman was also convicted of having an illegitimate relationship with a Saudi man, who was imprisoned for four years and will receive 400 lashes, Al-Hayat newspaper reported on Wednesday. The woman was also fined SR10,000 and will be deported from the Kingdom after serving the sentence. She was living in an old house in a poor Dammam district. According to the list of charges prepared by the public prosecutor, 180 blocks of hashish, 143 narcotic pills, 10 bottles of alcohol and a large amount of money were found with the woman. The woman admitted that she was using hashish but denied trading in drugs. She said the narcotic pills and the liquor belonged to her Saudi male partner. The man denied charges of khulwa (illegal seclusion) with the woman but said he was planning to marry her after she divorced her husband, who is in prison in Riyadh. The court banned the Saudi from traveling.
