year-old man died in his hospital bed in Jeddah Sunday before he could defend himself in court on charges of impersonating a police officer and attacking foreign workers. The legal action was filed against him by the sponsor of the workers a-year-and-a-half ago. Awad'Allah Al-Muabadi was buried in Khulais, 90 km northeast of Jeddah, Sunday. The charges filed against Al-Muabadi are believed to be baseless, according to the Kulais Police Department. The Human Rights National Society (NHRS) had taken up his case. Al-Muabadi's son requested an immediate “non-guilty” verdict in the matter, a move that had earlier been called for by the NHRS before the man's death. The court has not been able to finalize the matter. This was because the plaintiff allegedly kept missing scheduled court hearings and failed to acknowledge efforts to settle the matter out of court, according to the man's sons. The old man had made a few visits to the Khulais court to settle the case before his health deteriorated. “But the other man who accused him never made it to court,” his son said. The plaintiff had accused him of attacking his foreign workers while wearing the clothes of a police officer. When Al-Muabadi could not make to court any longer, he asked the NHRS to take up the case. Before his death, Al-Muabadi's poor health did not allow him to speak about the charges against him. He was suffering from kidney failure and high-blood pressure. The Al-Muabadi family has urged the court to pronounce its verdict as soon as possible to “restore the respect of their father that was lost in lies and a baseless case”.
