Police finally catch up with ‘Bawqiyas' By Ibrahim Alawi JEDDAH – Police in Jeddah have caught the long-sought criminal known as Bawqiyas after a marathon car-chase around the outskirts of Jeddah. The pursuit reached a dramatic finale on the roof of a building in a northern suburb of the city. The Chadian national Bawqiyas, nabbed along with his long-term compatriot “Ishaq”, has long been held responsible for a series of crimes including assaults, robberies and kidnapping. The pair's criminal activity began with the pickpocketing of elderly men. One of the pair would distract the unwitting victim while the other would whip his wallet from his top pocket and flee on a motorbike. They then expanded to target women, stealing their handbags and mobile telephones. With the introduction of new members and expansion into a gang, their activities became more aggressive until they eventually became violent. Police in Jeddah managed to detain gang members one by one until they finally caught up with the ringleader in a suburb of Jeddah and pursued him up to the rooftop of an empty building. – Okaz/SG Couple arrested for khilwah By Muhammad Al-Sa'ed TABUK – The Commission for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice has detained a man and a woman on charges of khilwah (being in seclusion with an unrelated member of the opposite sex). The Commission director in Tabuk said the man had been handed over to relevant authorities. – Okaz/SG Afghani fugitive apprehended By Sa'eed Rafi TANOMAH – Police in Al-Namas have arrested an Afghani fugitive accused of sexually assaulting a child along with other three men of the same nationality. Police apprehended the man in a mountain location after police combed the area for three days. The act was reported to police by the father of the child. – Okaz/SG Liquor in banana shipment By Salim Al-Subai'ee AHSA – Saudi Customs on Friday arrested a truck driver and seized 362 bottles of liquor found in the truck's shipment of bananas. The driver confessed to the crime. – Okaz/SG Man dies from gas leak By Abdulrahman Al-Qarni ASIR – A man suffocated to death because of a gas leak in a house in Asir. Rescue teams dispatched to the scene ventilated the house but were too late to save the man. Okaz/SG Asian found hanged By Entisar Abu Edrees DAMMAM/QATIF – Police in Qatif found the body of a 28-year-old Bangladeshi expatriate hanging by a plastic cord from a toilet ceiling. Police say there was no sign of criminal act. Police in Dammam are also searching for a man suspected of attacking another man with a knife before fleeing. The victim, who subsequently identified his attacker, was admitted to a hospital which duly reported the crime.
