Three people were sentenced to life in prison yesterday for colluding with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its operatives in support of hostile and terrorist activities in Bahrain.
According to the Public Prosecution, the High Criminal Court sentenced them in two espionage cases, and also ordered the confiscation of seized items.
In the first case, an investigation launched by the General Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Forensic Science found that the first defendant, a fugitive wanted by the security authorities and operating abroad on behalf of the terrorist IRGC, had recruited the second defendant, who was in Bahrain.
The second defendant’s role was to gather intelligence on strategic sites in the kingdom for use in planned attacks during the Iranian aggression.
Meanwhile, in the second case, the defendant had been in contact with an online account operated by the IRGC, sending videos of the Iranian attacks on Bahrain’s vital facilities.
The defendant also sent locations and co-ordinates of key sites in the kingdom to assist in further attacks, posing a serious threat to national security and public safety.
The Public Prosecution said it launched investigations immediately upon receiving the reports, questioning the defendants in Bahrain, interviewing witnesses, and assigning forensic experts to examine seized electronic devices.
Investigators concluded that the intelligence provided by the defendants played a significant role in the Iranian terrorist attacks targeting critical infrastructure and vital facilities in Bahrain, endangering the kingdom’s security and stability.
The defendants were then referred to the High Criminal Court, where the two cases were heard separately over several sessions.
The Public Prosecution said all legal guarantees were upheld, including the defendants’ right to legal representation and to present their defence, before the court issued its rulings yesterday.
It emphasised that espionage on behalf of states hostile to the kingdom is among the most serious crimes against national security, as it provides hostile parties with intelligence that can be exploited.
It also reaffirmed its commitment to pursuing such offences with the full force of the law and taking firm legal action to protect Bahrain’s security and stability.
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