A man has been accused of stealing BD1,500 from his mother-in-law with the help of a well-meaning colleague.
The 37-year-old Bahraini allegedly persuaded his co-worker to assist him by claiming that his bank account was ‘too full’ to receive any more funds, the High Criminal Court heard.
Yesterday, the defendant admitted to gaining unlawful access to the 63-year-old housewife’s bank account, appearing at the hearing via video link while in custody.
The court heard that the alleged victim had asked her son-in-law to help her open a bank account. While assisting her, he obtained her bank card details and PIN, which enabled him to access her account through the bank’s mobile application on his phone.
Prosecutors allege that this gave him unauthorised access to her funds, allowing him to carry out transactions without her knowledge or permission.
In June 2026, the alleged victim received text messages from the bank about amounts being withdrawn from her account.
She immediately reported the matter to the authorities.
An investigation by the General Directorate of Anti-Corruption and Economic and Electronic Security subsequently identified the defendant as the suspect.
During questioning, he reportedly admitted that he had asked a co-worker to receive money into his account, withdraw it in cash and hand it over to him.
To persuade his colleague to help, the defendant allegedly claimed that his own account had reached its upper limit and could no longer receive additional funds.
A total of BD1,500 was allegedly transferred in instalments to the co-worker’s account. The defendant then accompanied him to an ATM, where the colleague withdrew the cash and handed it over to him.
The defendant admitted to fraudulently using the victim’s electronic signature and illegally accessing an IT system to carry out unauthorised transactions.
The hearing has been adjourned to October 4 for defence arguments.
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