THREE Bahrainis accused of funding terrorism have been cleared of the charge.
The suspects, two men and a woman, were found not guilty yesterday by the High Criminal Court.
They were alleged to have financed radical groups behind attacks on the country’s security personnel between 2016 and last year.
However, judges have acquitted all three after concluding there was insufficient evidence to convict them.
Two of them, a 25-year-old male and a 22-year-old female, appeared in court to hear the ruling and cheered when judges delivered a verdict of not guilty.
Their 34-year-old co-defendant, who was described as the mastermind by prosecutors, was never arrested and was tried in absentia.
“The court, after examining the documents in the case, felt doubt and cannot find the defendants guilty,” stated the court ruling.
“The defendants were acquitted due to a lack of evidence.
“The court does not trust prosecution witness testimony and can only find the defendants guilty if there is crucial evidence against them.
“They cannot be found guilty and the doubt is in their favour.”
They were cleared of wrongdoing even though the 25-year-old, who was already in custody in connection with another case, previously admitted to distributing money to wanted fugitives during questioning at the Public Prosecution.
He said envelopes containing between BD50 and BD125 in cash were placed inside other envelopes, which also contained BD25, and delivered through dead drops all over Daih.
However, he denied knowing where the money came from.
The 34-year-old, who was acquitted in absentia, had been accused of directing the operation.
All three were also found not guilty of recruiting accomplices.
They were charged based on information provided by police informants, according to case files.
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