Abdul Rahman Al-Ali Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — The passport police in Jeddah have raided crime dens and buildings that sheltered violators of the country's residency law. The officers rounded up a number of illegal foreigners, including runaway maids and drivers and people who sheltered them, during the raid in Bani Malik district. The raids were conducted within the framework of an ongoing law enforcement campaign mounted by the Passport Directorate's research and investigation wing. Some of the people arrested during the raid were accused of smuggling Umrah overstayers from Makkah into the city and offering their services to families. Sadyia Bordi, one the arrested maids, told the police that she had come to Makkah on an Umrah visa two years ago and she had been working as a maid with a Saudi family for a monthly salary of SR1,600, in addition to a two-day weekend off. She said she used to pay SR200 monthly to a man identified only as Dawood who brought her from Makkah and helped her find the job with the Saudi family. The campaign resulted in the arrests of six people who sheltered illegal foreigners in underdeveloped neighborhoods of the city. About 125 others were arrested for violating the residency law. All the detainees were handed over to the Foreigners Section at the Passport Department for further action against them.
