Prosecution Appeals Embezzlement Verdict

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Manama: The Public Prosecution has filed an appeal against a ruling issued by the First High Criminal Court in a case involving the embezzlement of investors’ funds by an investment company. The Head of the Appeals Prosecution said the appeal seeks to correct an error in the application of the law, after the court ordered only the company owner to repay the embezzled funds, despite convicting other defendants who participated in the crimes.

She explained that while the court sentenced the company owner to imprisonment and obligated him to return the embezzled funds, it did not impose the same repayment obligation on the company’s chief executive officer and two board members. The three were convicted for their involvement in two fraudulent transactions worth a total of 320,000 Bahraini dinars. This omission, she said, constituted a legal error, prompting the Public Prosecution to exercise its right to appeal. The first appeal hearing has been scheduled for Sunday, January 11, 2026.

The case originated from a financial report submitted to the National Center for Financial Investigations, which identified suspicious financial practices by the company owner. These included issuing fraudulent cheques, unjustified cash withdrawals and deposits, and making payments not stipulated in contracts. Investigations confirmed that the owner defrauded investors, forged documents, and laundered the proceeds of the crimes.

Further investigations revealed that the company’s CEO and two board members were involved in enabling the owner’s actions through their official capacities. The company owner was found to have promoted fictitious investment deals, falsely claiming that financing applications had been submitted, allowing him to embezzle funds from multiple investors. These practices ultimately led to the seizure of investors’ money and the referral of all defendants to the competent court, which issued the ruling now under appeal.