Brother, sister acquitted:

News in Brief

The Court of Appeals upheld the decision of the First Instance Court which had earlier acquitted a citizen and his sister of obtaining Kuwaiti citizenship through forgery by inserting their names in the file of the husband of their sister who obtained citizenship in 1962, says AlSeyassah.

The relevant officer testified that his secret investigations showed there was an agreement between the husband and his wife - the sister of the accused - to add them to the file of the husband but not as sister and brother of the wife but as children of the husband.

The husband and wife went to the Passports and Citizenship Affairs Department from 1962 to 1964 during which they gave false information to the relevant employee. They later obtained Kuwaiti citizenship, Kuwaiti civil ID cards and Kuwaiti passports for the accused.

The officer said he searched the houses of the accused after getting a warrant from the Public Prosecution. He disclosed the results of investigations showed that one of the accused went to the department in 1980 where he obtained the Kuwaiti citizenship document.

Results of investigations also showed that the other accused obtained the Kuwaiti citizenship certificate in 1983 and both of them received privileges allocated for Kuwaiti citizens illegally. He pointed out this was confirmed by the testimony of the son of the sister of the accused who said they were aware of the forgery and they are originally Iraqi citizens.

Attorney Abdulmuhssen Al-Qattan defended the accused in court. He argued the results of investigations represent the personal points of view of the officer, indicating the officer did not reveal the sources that supplied him with information for the court to confirm or dismiss it. He said it was not proven that the accused assumed the personalities of others. He then asserted that the elements of forgery crime are lacking, so there is no criminal intent.