A CHINESE man allegedly used a fake Covid-19 test certificate to travel between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, a court heard.
The 41-year-old, who travelled to Saudi Arabia on June 30 to pick up two managers of his company, was arrested on his return the same day.
The defendant was yesterday accused of forgery and fraud at the High Criminal Court.
He told judges that he was suddenly asked to pick up the managers and bring them to Bahrain, and since he had no time he contacted a man on social media to help him forge the negative Covid-19 test certificate.
“What I am accused of is true,” he said, in his statement to prosecutors.
“I was in a hurry when my managers told me I had to pick them up from Saudi Arabia,” he added.
“I contacted someone on social media and told him I required a fake Covid-19 certificate as I did not have time to undergo a test.”
A causeway official described how he discovered the defendant’s fake Covid-19 test certificate.
“I was working night shift on June 30 and remember checking a car with three Chinese men,” the 30-year-old Bahraini told prosecutors.
“Two of them had valid PCR test results, but when I scanned the QR code for the defendant’s certificate, I found it was fake.
“I immediately informed my superiors and he was arrested.”
The trial has been adjourned until Monday for review.
The defendant could face a prison term of up to three years and a maximum fine of BD5,000.
The GDN reported in July that a 38-year-old Bahraini was jailed for three years for faking a PCR test.
He was found guilty by the High Criminal Court of forging PCR test results as well as using the fake document to travel to Saudi Arabia.
He, however, objected to the verdict following which the High Criminal Court slashed the term to a year in jail.
He was caught on King Fahad Causeway on June 27 this year.
In another case, two Bahraini men were jailed for also forging Covid-19 test reports to travel across the causeway and sell the famous Bahraini halwa, a traditional sweet, in Saudi Arabia.
The men, aged 33 and 35, were found guilty of forgery by the Lower Criminal Court in August, which jailed each of them for 12 months.
The men were caught at the Saudi border in May this year.
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