An official from the Civil Status Administration in Jeddah is being held for investigation over the forging of a child's death certificate to pave the way for a claim of SR100 million in flood victim compensation. An official source said Wednesday that the Birth and Death Certificates Office employee wrote a handwritten death certificate for a girl who passed away on the Hijri date of 1429,11,29 as 1430,12,8 in order to include her on the list of victims from last November's floods. The employee struck a deal with the girl's father, a Saudi national, to be paid SR200,000 once the latter obtained victim compensation. The falsification was revealed by the father himself who said that his conscience led him to tell the truth after he saw his daughter in a dream saying “Don't do it, Daddy.” The father told investigators that at the time of his daughter's death he obtained a death report from the hospital but failed to complete procedures with the Birth and Death Certificates Office. After the floods, he saw the opportunity to collect a death certificate with the help of a willing official and register her name on the list of victims. The head of the Civil Affairs Department said the case had been taken to the Governor's Office and the Ministry of Interior, and the girl's name removed from the list of victims. The bereaved father is being held by the Commission for Investigation and Prosecution to verify the facts.
