FIVE men convicted of participating in a scheme to issue fraudulent SIM cards and sneak them into Jaw Prison are appealing their prison sentences, reports Zainab Almahdi.
In March, the High Criminal Court found the three Bahrainis, a Bangladeshi and a Vietnamese guilty of deceit by using other people’s digital identities and smuggling.
They will appear in front of judges at the Supreme Criminal Appeals Court on June 4.
The expats were sentenced to three years in jail and fined BD5,000 each, while the three Bahrainis each received six months in jail.
The Bangladeshi man, who worked in a mobile phone store in Juffair, reportedly used the names and information of ‘people who have never before been to Bahrain’ to issue an array of SIM cards.
The Vietnamese man was said to have supplied his expat co-defendant with the identity of the people in return for money.
After the SIM cards are issued, one Bahraini defendant gave these illegal cards to several inmates in Jaw Prison, while another defendant only smuggled cards to give to his brother, the final co-defendant in the case.
The GDN earlier reported that the scheme was uncovered when a detective received a tip from an informant, although it is unclear how the Bahraini managed to sneak the phone cards to inmates.
The detective added that the defendants used the help of unknown accomplices.
A search of the Bangladeshi man’s home revealed 60 SIM cards from three telecommunications company, and other cards with chips removed.
Although he admitted to the charges committed at his workplace, he denied any knowledge of the smuggling scheme.
A trove of electronics including phones and laptops, along with cash, were found at the Vietnamese man’s residence.
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