Makkah's Expatriate Administration has jailed and fined 443 people for breaking the country's residency laws by trafficking people into the city. The administration's director Colonel Hussein Al-Harthi said those caught smuggling illegal residents or pilgrims without Haj permits will be sentenced to either, or both, a two-year prison term and a SR100,000 fine. The offender's vehicle will also be confiscated. More than 10,000 illegal residents have so far been deported for breaking the Kingdom's laws. He said the Passports Department has set up checkpoints on all the routes to the h oly sites. Anyone found without a permit will be barred from entry. Meanwhile, the Administration's Fingerprint Division has recorded 15,554 violations. The division's head Jameel Al-Bishri said that their system had also discovered 264 people with criminal records. These people were now being questioned. It was also found that 832 people had changed their names and provided false information so that they could travel without the permission of their sponsors.
