Bahrain court reduces Saudi man’s jail term

Manama: The jail sentence of a 31-year-old Saudi man, convicted of running over a fellow countryman by his car on the Exhibition Road, was reduced on appeal.

The defendant’s initial 15 years in prison was revised to only seven years, followed by immediate deportation. The defendant was spared a lengthier jail term because his charge was revised by the High Criminal Court from intention murder to accidental killing.

DT News reported on March 6 last year that police had launched an extensive manhunt for a Gulf national driver after a 44-year-old man was found dead in the car parking of a hotel located on the Exhibition Road. The defendant had escaped to Saudi to evade arrest.

Before fleeing, he had abandoned his car, and used a taxi service, court files suggested. After realising that the man had died, the accused later surrendered to Bahrain’s police, claiming that he was in an inebriated state when the incident occurred.