Muscat – The Public Prosecution has announced the conviction of four citizens for fraud, bribery and misuse of public offices. The Criminal Court handed down jail sentences ranging from two to five years, along with fines of up to RO48,000.

According to a statement issued by the Public Prosecution, the first accused was given a five-year prison term and a fine of RO48,000 for offering a bribe. The second defendant, who accepted the bribe, also received a five-year jail term and a fine of RO10,000.

The third accused was sentenced to three years in prison and fined RO2,000, while the fourth individual received a two-year imprisonment and a fine of RO48,000. The court’s ruling includes the removal of the offenders from their offices and confisc- ation of the forged official documents. The verdict will be made public once it becomes final.

The Supreme Court upheld the Criminal Court’s ruling, convicting the following individuals:

Salim Masoud Salim: Found guilty of forgery in an official document, accepting a bribe, offering a bribe and misuse of position.

Ishaq bin Ahmed bin Saeed: Convicted for forgery in an official document, accepting a bribe and misuse of position.

Ahmed Khalfan Khalaf: Found guilty of forgery in an official document, accepting a bribe, as well as misuse of position and using information technology and networks to enter electronic data into a government information system with the intention of using these.

Ahmed Abdullah Said: Convicted of using a forged official document, offering a bribe to a public employee and attempting to illegally own government land.