Sudanese magic conman arrested By Ibrahim Alawi JEDDAH – Police in Jeddah have arrested a Sudanese man for swindling large sums of money out of clients who believed him to possess supernatural powers allowing him to turn blank pieces of paper into hard currency. The man in his forties, known as “Adam”, reportedly claimed to be able to perform other feats of magic such as creating rifts in marriages and forming attractions between people at will. Clients in his area of operation in the Al-Ghuleil District here also believed him to be able to recover lost property with his powers. The spokesman for Jeddah Police, Misfer Al-Ju'eid, warned the public of such persons, describing them as “conmen”, and asked people to report any instance of persons practicing magic. – Okaz/SG Pakistani poisons himself in Dammam By Hiba Al-Zahir and Fahd Al-Mureikhi DAMMAM – A Pakistani man reportedly committed suicide at his home in Dammam Saturday by consuming a poisonous powder used for treating toxic soil. The 24-year-old man's brother and several colleagues attempted to save him, but he died while being transported to hospital. A police spokesman in the Eastern Province said the deceased had had family problems in his country of origin. – Okaz/SG Body found in room but no suspicions By Abdul Khaliq Al-Ghamdi AL-BAHA – The body of an Egyptian man in his forties has been found in a flat in Al-Baha marketplace following information to that effect received by local police. A police spokesman said that the discovery of the resident's body was not being treated as suspicious, but investigations were ongoing. – Okaz/SG Firefighters rescue family of 8 By Iftikhar Bahafeen JIZAN – Firefighters rescued a family of eight from a blaze that gutted their two-story home in the village of Hila Ghawan in Bish Sunday. Rescue teams called to the scene of the fire were informed that eight persons remained trapped on the second floor, and set up ladders to extract them from the house after breaking through iron gratings. A fire official said the incident was caused by a short circuit in an air-conditioning unit. – Okaz/SG 6,000 kg of qat seized in a week By Abdu Alwani JIZAN – Border Guards in Jizan last week foiled attempts to smuggle into the Kingdom 6,000 kg of the illegal qat plant and seized large numbers of mobile telephones in operations that resulted in the detention of 3,000 illegal immigrants. A spokesman said Sunday that officers had also prevented 550 liters of fuel from being smuggled out of the country and 450kg of flour in their pursuit of individuals conducting illegal activities in the remote mountainous areas of the region. – Okaz/SG Pakistanis held in brothel bust By Ibrahim Alawi JEDDAH – Police busted Saturday an apartment in the Al-Safa District here being used as a brothel. Police were informed of suspicious activities being conducted by a Pakistani man at a building block containing 12 apartments, and sent in an undercover agent to knock on the door of each flat until he found the individual concerned. A subsequent raid on the premises led to the detention of the man and an unrelated woman of the same nationality, along with the discovery of contraceptive pills and condoms. – Okaz/SG Farm raid reaps 11 Asian booze suppliers By Abdul Hadi Al-Sama'eil AL-AHSA – The Commission for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice (Hai'a) has arrested 11 persons for running an alcohol-producing factory at a farm in Al-Uyoun after receiving information from the public of suspicious activity in the area. Upon raiding the site, which was run by 11 Asians who worked on production and distribution to clients in the Al-Ahsa region, the Hai'a found 136 barrels of liquid awaiting distillation and “large quantities” of illegal beverages ready for sale.
