Prince freed in billion-dollar deal
SAUDI ARABIA: Senior Saudi Prince Miteb bin Abdullah, once seen as a leading contender to the throne, has been freed after reaching a ‘‘settlement agreement’’ with authorities, paying more than US$1 billion (NZ$1.45b), a Saudi official says.
Miteb, who was head of the elite National Guard, was among dozens of royal family members, ministers and current and former senior officials who were rounded up in a graft inquiry at least partly aimed at strengthening the power of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
An official involved in the anticorruption campaign said Miteb was released yesterday after reaching ‘‘an acceptable settlement agreement’’.
‘‘The amount of the settlement was not disclosed, but it is believed to be more than one billion US dollar equivalent,’’ the official said. ‘‘It is understood that the settlement included admitting corruption involving known cases.’’
Royal family members and acquaintances of Miteb had earlier posted messages on social media suggesting that the prince was at his home in Riyadh, but they did not say how his release had come about.
Saudi authorities announced on November 4 the arrest of at least 11 royal family members, as well as four ministers and dozens of former officials and businessmen in what the government said was a crackdown on corruption. Billionaire prince Alwaleed bin Talal, an international investor, was among those detained.
Saudi authorities had been working on reaching agreements with some of those in detention, asking them to hand over assets and cash in return for their freedom.
In an interview with The New York Times published last week, Prince Mohammed bin Salman was quoted as saying that the vast majority of about 200 businessmen and officials implicated in the crackdown were agreeing to settlements under which they would hand assets over to the government.
Apart from Miteb, the Saudi official said at least three other people allegedly involved in corruption cases had also finalised settlement agreements.
He said the Saudi public prosecutor had also decided to release a number of individuals and to prosecute at least five individuals. The official gave no details on their identities.
Before he was sacked by a royal decree on November 4, Miteb headed the Saudi National Guard, an elite internal security force originally based on traditional tribal units that was run by his father, the late King Abdullah, for five decades.
He was also the last remaining member of Abdullah’s Shammar branch of the family to retain a key position at the top of the Saudi power structure, after his brothers Mishaal and Turki were relieved of their posts as governors in 2015.