Okaz/Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — The court will be compensating an innocent man around SR1 million for being wrongfully imprisoned. A source said a citizen was accused of being involved in a drug smuggling attempt six years ago. "The man was accused of smuggling drugs through a country in the Arab Gulf with an American and a Greek as accomplices. The man was arrested by the police and imprisoned for a year. The police imprisoned the man after the Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution had ordered the police to do so," said the source. The source also said the legislative court later pronounced the man innocent from his crime and released him. "The man demanded to be compensated and filed a lawsuit demanding a compensation of SR1.5 million. The man said being imprisoned has damaged his life. It has damaged his reputation, he had lost his job and his family suffered as a result," said the source. The source also said the judge requested the committee of experts to calculate an estimation of the deserved compensation. "The committee stated it estimates a compensation of SR1,500 for every day the man was in prison for, totaling to around SR547,500. The committee also took into account that the man would not be able to work for three years after his release. The committee estimated a compensation of SR400 for every day of the next three years, totaling to SR432,000," said the source. The source added the committee's calculations suggest an estimate compensation of SR979,500. "The police appealed the judge's verdict to compensate the man claiming it had not wrongfully imprisoned him. The police claim the man's relative was involved in the crime but the criminal had used the man's name and identity. The case is currently being revised by the Court of Appeals," said the source.
