2 officers among 7 acquitted in ‘State Security Leaks’ case
Kuwaiti duo absolved in drug-peddling
KUWAIT CITY, Jan 20: The Court of Appeals overturned the verdict issued by a lower court which sentenced a Kuwaiti citizen and his friend to four-year imprisonment with hard labor, and imposed a fine of KD
1,000 each as well as ordered the withdrawal of the citizen’s driving licence. The appellate court acquitted them of the charges.
The Public Prosecution charged the defendants for possessing hashish intended for consuming them but without authorization to do so. They were also found in possession of two psychotropic substances – methamphetamine and amphetamine.
The two were stopped by the police for speeding, and the arresting officer conducted provisional search on the vehicle and found the narcotics.
Representing the defendants was Lawyer Muhammad Al-Sayegh who faulted the entire procedures taken by the arresting police, given that he conducted the stop and search without a probable cause.
Seven acquitted: The Criminal Court recently acquitted seven defendants in the case of “State Security leaks” including two officers. At the same time, the court called upon the administrators and leaders of the State Security Agency to review the administrative and security system in the agency, reports Al-Qabas daily.
The court revealed that it has become clear to it that there are many aspects of the administrative system in this apparatus that are defective and faulty, and that the weaknesses in the security system of this apparatus has reached to such a point that leaks are made without being able to trace the perpetrators.
The Criminal Court clarified that the State Security apparatus is not like the rest of the security services, as it is relied upon to maintain the security of the state both internally and externally. Those in charge of it must promote its administrative and security systems in a manner befitting the level of the state, either in terms of the system in force or of the human elements.
Returning to the reasons for the acquittal of the defendants, the court explained that the accusation relied upon the findings of the investigations and the statements of the investigating officer regarding the results of his investigations on the incident. However, they are not sufficient in the eyes of the law, given that they were based on secret sources and not backed with substantial evidence.
What the investigation officer stated in his statements that the decision to transfer one of the accused from his position to another was what made him carry hatred and anger towards his subordinates, and that the second defendant had the intention to harm his directors, is not reassuring, since what the investigation officer decided in the foregoing is only analysis that do not amount to the certainty of evidence on which it relies in indicting the accused. The court stressed that the moral in criminal trials is the conviction of the trial judge based on the evidence presented to him that the accused is guilty or innocent, and that rulings in the penal articles are neither established nor taken except on certainty and conviction.