Shelter for fugitives: Woman’s plea rejected

One-year in jail for renting apartment to hide three fugitives

DT News Network

Manama

A Bahraini woman’s appeal against one-year jail sentence for sheltering three fugitives was rejected yesterday. Prosecutors claimed that the 32-year-old woman rented an apartment in Sitra to hide the convicted men, who were wanted by the police.

Two of the fugitives were arrested following a police raid in the apartment after investigations confirmed about their whereabouts.  

The third fugitive, however, was arrested in a local dental clinic, where he was accompanying the defendant. She had confessed during interrogation to providing a safe house to the trio, but pleaded not guilty before the court. 

"I am working as a cashier in a local store, and I have a friendship with one of them (the fugitives)," she told prosecutors. 

"He asked me to help him in leasing an apartment for him stating that his father had kicked him out from the house because, as per his claims, he was involved in an alcohol smuggling case," she added.  

"I rented the apartment under my name because the landlord doesn't approve of offering accommodations to male individuals," she explained.

The woman claimed that she had discovered that he was a runaway criminal after police raided his family's house, which is located in the same neighborhood of her house.  

"I asked him to vacate the apartment, but he kept giving me empty promises," she said.  According to court files, one of the fugitives was convicted in 16 different criminal cases. In one of the cases he was given life sentence.