RIYADH — The Riyadh Criminal Court sentenced a Saudi citizen and a Syrian national a total of two and a half years in prison and SR100000 in fine for their involvement in commercial cover-up (tasattur). The citizen was awarded with six months in prison while the Syrian national was sentenced to two years of imprisonment, the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement carried by Saudi Press Agency. The court also ruled to seize and confiscate the funds and proceeds resulting from the crime of concealment, in addition to the cancellation of the commercial register and the license. The Syrian national will be deported after serving the jail term and payment of fine. The citizen has been banned from practicing commercial activity for a period of five years. The zakat, fees, and taxes will be imposed from the convicts in addition to publishing the verdict in local newspapers at their own expense. It was revealed in investigations that the Saudi citizen allowed the Syrian national to engage in cover-up business with a market value of SR2 million in the contracting sector in the city of Riyadh. The citizen enabled the resident to practice contracting activities through a contracting firm belonging to him.
