Court orders three-year jail for ex-minister in dud cheque case

The Minor Criminal Court yesterday sentenced an ex-minister to three years of imprisonment after finding him guilty of issuing a dud cheque for BD160,000. Several verdicts that varied between fines and jail terms were issued against the former official in similar cases recently, according to prosecutors.

The details of the case show that the Anti-corruption, Economic and Electronic Security Directorate in Interior Ministry received a complaint from an Arab businessman against the defendant, accusing him of cheating him in a land deal. The victim told the prosecutors that he had agreed with the former minister on buying land, which the latter claimed to own, for a price of BD160, 000.

The victim also informed that he paid the amount in cheque and received a cheque of the same amount from the defendant in guarantee until the paperwork and formalities for the ownership transfer are completed.

However, the victim claimed that he discovered that the land could not be sold as per a land attachment order issued by the court against the defendant. The man told the interrogators that the defendant would deny the deal reached between them and repeatedly avoid him.